I Dream of Death Note
by ShardsOfTheCrystalHeart
Summary: My name is Senyaita Boulibashi. I have powers. I have visions . . . I have dreams. These, are just a handful of them.
1. I am Senyaita Boulibashi

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died.**

* * *

Hey. My name is Senyaita Boulibashi. That's: SEN-YAY-TAH BULLY-BAH-SHEE. But please, call me Sen. The following events you are about to read are not real. They are visions, possibilities . . . in other words, events that _could happen_. I guess you all would expect as much, since this is a fanfic and all, but . . . . ah hell, nevermind, I don't really feel like I have to explain myself on this.

I'm known to most as a . . . I guess you could say, a vagabond vigilante. Long story short: I was just your average teenager blah-de-blah-de-blah, and somehow I ended up with superpowers. Yes, I said "somehow". For some reason or another, I can never remember how I ended up with these things in the first place. All I can remember is what happened before, what happened after, and the little freebies that my Foresight Ability gives me. Between my old life and the new, there is a complete blank.

I usually make it a point to never actively see into the future. My reason? Well, I figure a lot of things are never that fun if you already know what's going to happen. Although, sometimes, it can give you an edge . . . which is why I gave one of my "superpowers" a mind of its' own. If it's something that I really, really, _really_ have to know in order to insure my own survival and that of my friends and loved ones, it'll "tell" me. I'll be just fine figuring the rest out by myself.

Just for the record, this wasn't something I could do overnight. Like everybody else, I had to keep working at it, and working at it, until the visions would leave me the hell alone. I got what I wanted, but in the aftermath, I had to deal with the plethora of visions that got shoved into my brain while I was fixing the duct tape over the Oracle's mouth. Among these visions, were, if you couldn't already tell by now, the ones that dealt with me, and the people in the world of Death Note.

* * *

**Vision 1: I meet L**

It was nighttime. The both of us were in a dark room in one of the higher levels of whatever building it was supposed to be in this, no doubt, random city. Maybe we were in New York . . . China maybe . . . Maybe this building was a hotel, or perhaps some old business building that no one used anymore. Ah well, that all didn't matter really.

The only light in the room came from, of course, the city lights outside, and also a laptop that lay on the floor in the middle of the room. A young man with shaggy black hair, white shirt, and baggy pants sat in front of the laptop, one leg drawn up to his chest and the other stretched out on the floor. He was talking . . . . wrapping up a case I think, talking to . . . I don't know, the government, FBI, CSI . . . oh look, it seems the criminal has been caught . . . he's talking official stuff with the head of whoever through the microphone sounding, for all the world, if the inflection of his voice was anything to go by, like he was bored to tears.

I chuckled to myself. Poor guy . . .

Oh, whoops, looks like the bastard tried to pull a fast one. That's okay, L's got that covered.

Soon he finished talking, and softly closed his laptop, and then stood up.

I laughed, probably startling him a bit, though the only sign of that was a slight twitch in his right shoulder. He turned around, his wide dark eyes, his utterly blank stare looking right at little old me, right leg drawn up to my chest, and my left leg dangling off my seat towards the floor.

"I knew I liked you for a reason!" I exclaimed.

I'd come here around a month or so ago, and somehow managed to catch L as he was beginning another investigation. I didn't feel like introducing myself just yet, so I watched him . . . and had a real ball of a time with it. I swear, there were times when I just felt like cracking up, not caring about who was going to hear me or if I even had my shield up. I mean, L was completely owning this guy at every turn! I have no idea, even to this day, how he managed to last this long with L riding on his ass!

I grinned at the pale, insomniac little detective. From his face, I couldn't really tell much what he was thinking, but I could guess a few things, like: Who was I? How did I get here without him knowing? And, most importantly, were his eyes going, or was I really floating in midair?

For a moment, there was complete silence.

I leaned back in my "seat". I was going to give him ten minutes to think, bring himself back together, and ask me a question . . . well, he's a genius, so maybe he wouldn't need that much time, but . . . I wanted to be polite.

Idly, I wondered what exactly L saw as he looked at me. I was thinking that maybe he just saw a strange little girl (I'M EIGHTEEN, BY THE WAY! . . . well, physically) with dark hair and dark, yet somehow sparkly eyes, wearing black clothing, who just happened to be sitting/floating in midair and grinning like the little idiot imp that I was. But, on a more profound level, I wondered: Did he see a girl? Or a threat?

. . . If I were him, I'd go with threat.

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**No Angel – Dido**

**What the Hell – Avril Lavigne**

**Fighter – Christina Aguilera**

**Help, I'm Alive – Metric**


	2. What am I and Why am I Here

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

**Vision 2: What am I (also: I Meet L – Part 2)**

You know, between the unexpected appearance, the fact that I was floating in _midair_, and the potential possibility that I could end up killing his ass . . . I wonder if what really freaked him out the most was the fact that I had wings sprouting out of my back.

Oh wait, yeah, I forgot to tell you: I have wings. Black wings. Not very original, maybe, but . . . I like them. I usually use my wings for (obviously) flying . . . and partially for style, and partially out of a sense of vanity. 'Cause, really, I don't actually _need_ the wings, I just like how they look, how they feel . . . and before you start getting any ideas, no, I am not an angel , nor am I a fallen one. I'm not a demon either (though there _are_ plenty of other people who would disagree). Also, I don't have my wings out _all the time_, (those kind of things tend to arouse suspicion!) just whenever I'm flying, or just came back from flying, or, sometimes, when I'm fighting, or sometimes when I feel, perhaps, that a sense of flair is needed.

. . . So, L, of course, decided to break the silence and ask me who I was.

"Senyaita Boulibashi" I answered. I floated off my "seat" and landed softly on the ground. "But please, call me Sen". I had my hands in my pockets, and I was fighting with myself to keep them there, 'cause I _really_ wanted to reach out my hand, more or less inviting him in for a handshake (which I _wanted_ to happen . . . really, _really _BADLY) . . . but, well, common sense told me that he wouldn't . . . _didn't_ trust me. Not now.

. . . Smart man.

He stared at me for awhile, I guess wondering if I was serious. On the one hand, there were a lot of people in the world who had some pretty strange names. Like that one teacher from Texas whose last name was "Hickey" . . . and let's not forget the fact that some guys have girls' names, and some girls have guys' names . . . on the other hand, my name had to have been too ridiculous to have been actually real, but then . . .

Well, whatever he was thinking, eventually he decided to say: "That's not your real name."

"Yes it is." I said, still smiling.

No it wasn't. Well, it was and it wasn't. I _knew_ myself as Sen. Senyaita Boulibashi is who I am . . . but it wasn't the birth name that my Mommy and Daddy gave me. "Sen " was just as much an alias as "Hideki Ryuuga" . . . even if I didn't like it.

'Course, I couldn't let him know that . . . not yet. Sorry L, you're going to have to wait a little longer . . .

He didn't respond to that. Instead he said nonchalantly, "I don't suppose you'll tell me how you got here."

"You've seen the wings, right?" I said, slightly raising an eyebrow, "I'm pretty sure you've guessed, and you know what? You're right: it's magic."

He probably thought I was making fun of him by now, but . . . it was the truth.

"You could have made them yourself."

"I did . . . but they're real." I reached behind me with my right hand, plucked out one of the feathers, and handed it to him. "Here, you can analyze it with whatever high class technological shit you've got, but . . . other than a few oddities, it's just like an actual birds' feather . . . I'll try to make sure that they don't make your machines explode, or . . . anything worse."

See, that was the thing with my "feathers". Since they were a part of me, they had some of my energies, and unless I was paying close attention to them, or else put a lock on their precise "function" . . . Well, I think you can imagine what would happen. Not exactly World War III , but . . . something would get hurt.

He glanced down at the feather, and then looked back up at me, his index finger resting on his lips. Probably still wondering if I was lying, or about to screw him over. I, meanwhile, kept my hand raised. I wasn't about to put it down until he actually took the damn thing. Please L, I want you to trust me, please, I'm not going to hurt you, I'm serious, I mean it, please! . . .

**.*.*.*.**

Things get blurry for a bit . . . I don' t know if he actually took the feather, or if I gave in and let it disappear fro m my hand in a flash of white light . . . What I do know is . . .

* * *

**Vision 3: Why am I here? (also: I Meet L – Part 3)**

"I want to protect you."

That sentence comes out breathless, sad, and solemn. I'm fully prepared to fail . . . it's happened before. I'm not infallible, I'm not . . .

I'm not exactly sure what L's reaction is to this one, but then . . . well, I guess it goes like this: Just because you're psychic, that doesn't mean that your visions tell you _everything_. Especially if you don't want them to.

But then, of course, it could just be the egotistic part of myself affecting these visions. Me, actually expecting one of the world's best detectives, this enigma who seems to resemble more of an animal than a man, to (1) believe a word I say (though I can back up some of it pretty well), or (2) Even accept my help. I didn't know him that well, so it's possible that he's one of those people who insists on doing everything on their own, even if they have to manipulate other people to do it. But, then again, maybe not. Either way, I wasn't about to take no for an answer . . . I wasn't going to let him die.

I guess there must have been some small moment of silence . . . I turned to my left, clasped my hands behind my back and started walking back and forth across the carpet.

"Pretty soon . . . ah, crap, what year is it?" I asked, looking at him.

He said nothing, just kept staring with those bottomless eyes of his.

"I'm serious L, I have no idea what time it is." That tends to happen (to me, anyway) when you spend all your time jumping from place to place, from time zone to time zone, from planet to planet . . . you get the picture.

". . . _L_!"

". . ."

"Come on, _please_?"

". . . 2001."

"2001, huh? Hmmm . . ." I lifted my fingers to mouth, thinking . . . let's see, what year, what year . . . ah!

"Okay, two years from now . . . a killer will be born. That person's actions will take the world by storm. People will end up being divided . . . in their morals, and in their status . . . in other words, who gets to live or die. In my opinion, this . . . killer, is just somebody with a humongous ego and somewhat of a god complex. Even so, the killer won't be found that easily. The killer's smart . . . and the world's biggest liar. That killer will be able to fool friends (if somebody like that can even _have_ any friends), family . . ."

". . . the killer . . . will hide in plain sight. Of course, you'll end up being interested in this case, and so will get yourself involved. There will be a struggle between the two of you, an epic battle to see who can truly defeat the other . . ."

I stopped, unsure how to say the rest . . . unwilling . . .

I looked up into L's eyes. He was waiting for me to continue. I sighed, took a deep breath, gathered my bearings and spat:

"You end up dying."

There was a moments' silence in which I tried to collect myself . . . I hated this part of the story.

"You get close to finding out who the killer is . . . but you die before you are able to. A few years later, your successors take up your work . . . and finish what you started. The killer loses . . . The end."

I looked away from him, my fists clenched . . . the injustice of it all . . . I hate it . . . screw symbolism, he shouldn't have . . .

I exhaled silently, trying to relax myself. I looked back at him.

"Before I go on, I want to show you what it is I can do . . . and what I can't do."

"I have . . . basically any superpower that you can think of. The ones I use most often include: super-strength, flying. . ."

I raised both of my fists, and caused white flames to emanate from them.

"My flames . . . which by the way, are just like any other flame, except for a few things like their color, the fact that I can control the intensity of the heat, and the fact that they _will only burn what I want them to_. I also . . ."

I relaxed my fists, let out the flames, and let my left hand down. Then, I flicked my wrist, like I was spinning something in my hand. A flash of white light appeared in my hand, and on the second rotation the white light changed into a _sai_ (you know the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles? You know the weapon Raphael uses? Yeah, that). The blade was a brilliant silver, shining, metallic. There was a great shining red ribbon wrapped around the handle, the end tied up in a knot on the lower part of the handle, at the base, with just a little length of ribbon dan gling off the end . . . just for style.

". . . can make any weapon I want appear out of thin air . . . and use it. I can make myself disappear, as well as hide my aura. You won't be able to see me, sense me, feel me . . . in other words, I create the illusion that I'm not there at all, that I don't "exist" here . . . and while I'm sure that's going to be quite disturbing and cause a few nightmares as well as fits of paranoia, I can assure you, I only use this trick to benefit other people . . . and maybe sometimes eavesdrop on my friends . . . just for fun."

By the time I'd finished saying this last bit, I had "put away" my sai, making it disappear in another flash of white light.

"I also have the ability to heal. No mat ter how sick, or chopped to pieces you a re, I'll be able to fix you. I can also manipulate your brain . . . I can make you think that you aren't feeling any pain at all, even if your intestines are hanging out . . . hell, I can even make you think that it never happened in the first place, and perhaps the most you'll remember about it is just some sick, twisted nightmare."

"However . . . there's a catch. I only use my powers if the need arises, in order words, if it's either (A) My responsibility to take care of whatever shit is going down in any place or time, or (B) If it's to protect the person whose job it is to save the world . . . well, him, and a few of his friends . . ."

"Also, even though I have the ability to bring the dead back to life, that doesn 't mean I can do it all the time . . . actually, I don't think I've ever done it at all, really.

"That isn't to say I haven't _tried_ . . . oh god knows I've tried . . . but . . . every time I do, it's like I run into a wall . . . something keeps stopping me . . ."

I shrugged. "My guess: the Big Man Upstairs" I continued, pointing up at the ceiling.

"I guess it has something to do with" I waved my hands about randomly, "spookily " . . . but mostly mockingly as I said i n an overdramatic voice:

""UPSETTING THE COSMIC BALANCE" or some other shit. Which I guess kind of makes sense, since, if I just went around rescuing _everybody_ from certain death, then . . ." I let my hands down, feeling somewhat defeated.

"Well, anyway, the point is you can't expect me to be doing everything for you. My main goal here is to keep you alive . . . and to stop the killer. The rest, I'm sure . . . no, I know for a fact . . . that you can take care of yourself."

"So . . . what do you say?"

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Enjoy the Silence – Depeche Mode**

**Enjoy the Silence (Linkin Park Mix) – Depeche Mode**

**L's Theme A, B, and C (or, L No Nakama, whatever) – Death Note Soundtrack**

**Misa no Uta (orchestra version) – Death Note Soundtrack**

**Ring My Bells – Enrique Iglesias**

**Fallen – Sarah McLachlan**

**Dr. Online – Zeromancer**

**Moon Dance – Nightwish**


	3. Welcome to BB's Nightmare

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

**A/N - To any and all of my fellow readers who have read this story and found it interesting: If you haven't already read **_**Death Note: Another Note**_**, then once you have finished reading "The Murders" STOP, as there'll be some spoilers, and as we all know, SPOILERS . . . NOT FUN. You can either go to your local bookstore and read the book yourself AND THEN come back and read this fic, or you could just skip over any chapters that have the letters "B" and "B" in them and wait a couple weeks for me to get to the Kira chapters. Or . . . you can go right ahead and read. Your choice.**

* * *

_Look, if you had one shot, or one opportunity_

_. . . one moment . . ._

_Would you capture it?_

_Or just let it slip?_

"Lose Yourself" – Eminem

* * *

**Interlude: My Thoughts on L's Thoughts**

I think L . . . well, this is just my basic assumption of what he thought, but . . . from listening to what I was saying, he understood this much:

1) There was a chance that I could be lying. For all he knew, I could be really good at machines and science and all that stuff, and using them to fool other people . . . in other words, a master illusionist . . . Or, just maybe . . . I wasn't really human after all.

For the record, I am, in fact, human . . . I'm just a human with superpowers. Well, nonetheless, if my understanding of L's suspicious nature is correct, he'll probably conduct a few tests on me . . . just to make sure.

2) I could either be a genius (with superb acting skills, mind you) who was only pretending to have the intellect of your average teenager . . . or I could really be a teenager who, "superpowers" aside, was way in over her head.

3) I wanted to protect him. I could probably just be an assassin pretending to want to protect, but in actuality wanted to kill, but . . . that didn't seem too likely, since he was very good at hiding himself, and nobody besides Watari (as far as I know) knew where he was at all times. Even so . . . there was that possibility . . .

4) I knew him. Maybe not well, but . . . the first thing I had said to him: "I knew I liked you for a reason!" showed that I had been watching him for awhile.

5) I was good at hiding too. He had no idea how long I had been sitting behind him . . . he had no idea how long I'd been watching him.

6) Collectively, everything I had said thus far, if I had been telling the truth, added up to this: He would be in great danger soon, and I, whether or not I had any connection _to _that danger, was offering my services. Not only that, but I was asking him a huge favor: To stay with him. To take me in, so to speak. Not as an apprentice, or a protégé, not as a servant . . . but as a bodyguard and companion. I wanted to stay with him . . . until the danger had passed.

7) If I really did have "every superpower he could think of" . . . there was a high probability that, if he favored his life, he shouldn't trust me. With anything.

Now note, these are _my _thoughts so there is a _very large percent chance_ that I've missed the target entirely. I won't pretend to know the mind of a genius like the back of my own hand . . . but, all the same . . . I want him to trust me. I don't know what happens from this point on in the visions (after all, they're only _possibilities_) but . . . would he . . .

. . . even knowing the danger I posed to him . . . would he take that risk? And accept?

* * *

**Vision 5: Habit**

Days passed. L did his thing. I did mine . . . usually in the same room. I read, he worked; I chugged down my soda at dinnertime, he ate his sweets

(WHERE THE FUCK DOES HE GET THIS STUFF? WATARI? I MEAN, GEEZ, THE WAY HE WAS GOING AT IT THERE HAD TO BE A WHOLE WAREHOUSE SOMEWHERE IN THE BUILDING, FULL OF SWEETS, WITH THE SOLE PURPOSE OF KEEPING HIM HAPPY FOR THE REST OF THE MONTH! Ah well . . . he had his quirks . . . and I had mine. I guess it's just another reason for me to love him);

I listened to music, he talked to random people through his computer. It was all just passing the time, really . . . though it did have its' fun times.

One day came when, while he was working on his computer, going through some files, nibbling at a bit of chocolate . . . I was right behind him, just lying back, arms crossed behind my head . . . on a couch. I was looking over at him, just watching . . . then, randomly, I decided to get up and walk right on over . . .

. . . and I hugged him from behind.

Now, the first time I did that, it was like hugging a freaking _statue_. He didn't move. Not. One. Bit. From the hairs on the top of his little head, to his right pinky (which was _still_ raised in the air, by the way (his hand, I mean)) to his freaking _toes_, every part of him was frozen.

Okay, I know I did something wrong . . . L's probably screaming 'SOMEBODY'S INVADED MY BUBBLE!' in his head right now . . . though, more than likely, a bit more eloquently. But . . . I wasn't about to let go. I liked this too much, and . . .

Ah hell.

You know, in a way, he kind of reminded me of my cat. Every time I hugged him (which was a lot . . . I loved my kitty) every animal instinct in him said "GET THIS WOMAN OFF OF MEH!", and he would freaking_ squirm_ with everything he had until he broke free. Of course, his squirming would only cause me to hold on tighter, although on other occasions, he would just lie there, stiff as a freaking board, until at some point when my grip loosened and I let my guard down . . . and then he would BREAK FREE!

After a period of silence, L asked "What are you doing?"

Like he wasn't_ fazed _at all.

. . . Grrrrrrrrr

"I'm raping you." I said curtly, a little annoyed. "I'm hugging you, Detective, what does it look like I'm doing?"

**.*.*.*.**

Don't know what happens after that, but what I do know is my hugging him had become, like I said, a habit.

In almost every other vision I had, it was of me hugging L from behind. Every time I did it, my arms were usually crossed in front of his chest in an "X". My right hand would grip his left shoulder, and my left, his right. This, more often than not, made it easier for those times when I really felt possessive of him, and clutched him closer to me, like a teddy bear, or a good book that I was afraid that someone would steal.

It didn't matter if he was sitting on the floor, or in a chair, somehow I always managed to squeeze behind him and wrap him in a hug (and yes, my powers did have some influence now and again.).

I usually spent great periods of time like that. Just sitting there, hugging him . . . and on more than one occasion staring off into space.

And well, as for L . . . at the very least, he knew that I wouldn't choke him . . . and that someone had his back . . . literally.

* * *

**Vision 6: The Murders (also: My Choice)**

_July 20, 2002._

It was almost time. Somebody was going to die.

But . . . what was I supposed to do? I knew what I was going to do in regards of the Kira victims, I mean, dying like that just wasn't fair, was it? Even if a lot of them were terrible enough to deserve it.

I wasn't supposed to save everybody. I'm only allowed to change just few things, and that's it . . . cosmic balance . . . shit . . . I . . . I don't know.

I can't save them. I don't know why, but I can't save them. But I can! I mean, I_ can_ do it, can't I? So what was I supposed to do? Break all the rules like I usually do and fake their deaths, and not reveal the truth until the "right time"? But . . . if I did that . . . what would happen? What if I mess things up?

I mean, it's not like people don't die just_ every single day. _I mean, bad stuff happens, people get hurt, or age gets the best of them. It's just the way life is, it's the Circle of Life . . . every day I've had to grit my teeth and remind myself of that . . . it's . . . it's horrible . . . I hate it.

What am I supposed to do?

. . . . . . .

I wonder . . . what if I'm just secretly_ deciding_ who gets to live or die. Who gets to cheat death. Maybe . . . I'm curious . . . curious about their deaths, the way the die, how they feel, how they make others feel . . .

No . . .

No, NO, **NO!**

Oh God, please no . . . No . . . No . . . I'm not God . . . I'm not God . . . I never have been and I never will be . . . No . . . No . . .

No . . . .

No . . . .

* * *

**Vision 7: It Isn't What You Say, It's What You DON'T Say**

I was lying on my stomach, resting my head on my arms, watching L work. His eyes . . . deep, dark, and calculating . . . they're like pitch.

. . . it was like a giant hole in the ground . . . a black hole, maybe? Hmmm . . .

You know, I bet I could push someone in that hole, and they'd fall . . . and fall . . . and fall . . . and keep right on falling.

. . . They died, you know. Quarter Queen, Believe Bridesmaid, and Backyard Bottomslash (what a name, huh?) . . . they're dead

. . .

I watched L sift through some papers, chewing on a lollipop. He was working on the case as we speak.

I usually never made it a point to look at the files he was working on. He was doing work . . . good work . . . and that's all I needed to know. This time, however . . .

Softly, I asked "Whatcha doin'?"

L looked over at me, still gnawing on his lollipop.

"There have been some murders going on in Los Angeles. The police can't figure it out, so I'm taking the liberty of completing the job for them."

As usual, huh?

"Can I see?"

L just stared at me . . . I guess that was his way of asking "Are you serious?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Come on, L, it's not like I'm gonna rip your precious work to shreds . . . I'm just curious."

And of course, he had to be thinking: Why now?

Even so, he laid the files in front of me. I sat up, cross-legged, and . . . pretended to look through them, my eyes just skimming the pages, not really registering any of the words. I winced a bit when I saw the pictures . . . jeez, somebody had to get this guy in Hollywood. Or, perhaps not.

**.*.*.*.**

"You know what's interesting, L?" I asked. L looked over at me from his computer. "The names of the guys that were killed . . . well, look, there's Backyard Bottomslash, Quarter Queen, and Believe Bridesmaid. If you take the initials of all their names, they spell the acronym for Barbeque! Twice! I wonder if this guy likes food . . ."

"Hmmm . . . now that I think about it, I wonder if this guy has a thing for duality . . . I mean, really: BBQ, BBQ? Hm . . ."

"Also, you wanna know something cool?" I grabbed a pencil and a piece of paper. "I know you'd said "maybe this guy has a thing for the number 9", but . . . what if he doesn't?"

"Let's see, first murder happened on the 31st of July . . . police got a crossword puzzle nine days before . . . four days after the first murder, Quarter Queen died . . . then, on August 13th, Backyard Bottomslash died . . ."

"I really think the number 13 has a place here . . . look, nine and four make thirteen . . . the third murder _happened_ on the 13th . . ." I wrote down two numbers: 13 and 13.

" . . . and here comes the good part: when you push 1 and 3 together, they make "B"!" I wrote down two large, capital B's under the two 13's, and then handed the paper over to L.

He glanced down at the paper for a bit, holding it between his index finger and thumb.

"Oh, and the number 31? 13 spelled backwards."

**.*.*.*.**

L looked up at me from the page he was holding.

"Do you know something I don't?"

Probably not.

"Do _you_ know something_ I _don't?" I responded in kind.

I sighed, slouched a little in my seat, rested my elbows on my knees, and said: "Look, L, I only know_ who exactly_ is committing the murders. I just don't know why, or what his game is."

Although, from what little information I'd garnered, I think he might've had some beef with L . . . but, like I said, I didn't know why.

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Welcome to My Nightmare – Alice Cooper**

**L's Idealogy – Death Note Soundtrack**

**I'm Not Dead – Pink**

**Television Rules the Nation/Around the World Remix – Daft Punk**

**Around the World – Daft Punk**

**She Will Be Loved – Maroon 5**

**Dear Agony – Breaking Benjamin**


	4. BB: WTF? L!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

**A/N: By the way, PUN(S) NOT INTENDED!**

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"_They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. But I find it somewhat... distasteful. To be given credit for work that's not mine. Especially inferior work."_

Jigsaw (AKA John Kramer)

_**Saw V (2008)**_

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**Vision 8: A Moment to be Remembered**

Naomi stepped on B.

. . . .

**NAOMI **stepped on **B**.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

**BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**

Oh my god, I'm not sure if that was cruel irony, a metaphor, or what! Maybe she didn't mean to do it, but WHO CARES? I mean, she's supposed to represent L in this case, and she fucking stepped on his EVIL TWIN, HIS CLONE! HAHAHAHAHAHA!

And you know what? Having my "13/B" theory confirmed by her and B just _made me feel so good _. . . . I felt so smug about the fact that I figured out that little detail before it was brought up . . . then again, I already knew who was behind the murders, so perhaps I cheated a little . . . . but I _was_ right . . . don't I get bonus points for that?

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**Vision 9: Right and Wrong**

For some reason, I feel like I have to apologize to B for my little outburst . . . I don't know why, but . . . I feel like I have to.

From the beginning of the case, I didn't trust him. When he masqueraded as "Ryuzaki" . . . at first, I wasn't sure what to believe. I knew L had an evil clone of sorts, so I wasn't sure . . . but, I ended up figuring it out anyway. And you know what? I was insulted. The moment I figured out his little trick I kept giving him the "evil eye" every time I saw him, every time he made a move, and every time he got too close to Naomi, because I was convinced he was going to do something bad to her.

. . . But he didn't.

. . . I knew that pretty much the whole basis for his actions was his desire to knock L off his high horse, take his place; essentially, defeat him, and go further than L was ever able to go. He killed people. There was some evidence that there was something psychologically wrong with him . . . and yet . . . for some reason, I couldn't really hate him. Sometimes, when he was doing some of his little antics, I'd be fighting myself not to laugh or smile. I wasn't sure if I was tempted to do those things because I had L's picture in my head, and this is supposed to be what B looks like . . . or not.

Every time I felt that urge to laugh, I kept reminding myself that I hated him because he was bad, he had done bad things, and was going to do more bad things in the future . . . .

I guess . . . well, I don't think I actually hated him at all . . . I could barely even _act_ like I hated him . . . . he just seemed . . . pitiable, to me.

And those people he killed . . . did they really count as murders? I mean, when B took them down, apparently they were _supposed_ to die anyway at that place in time . . . and all B was trying to do was get L's attention . . . B could see the times of his victims' deaths, so, was he basically just seeing them off on the Grim Reaper's ferry? Or was he still a murderer, a man who had cut an innocent person's life short with his deeds?

. . . . Mello said that the expressions on the victims' faces showed no sign of struggle . . . there was a possibility they hadn't felt any pain at all.

The people . . . who got the brunt of the effects of this case: feelings of digust, challenge, anger . . . . were L and Naomi.

I guess, despite his wacked out personality, B didn't actually, _technically _do anything wrong (aside from vandalizing a few buildings). I'm not saying that what he did wasn't bad, but . . . if they were meant to die at that time, anyway . . . . I guess . . . I think his main wrong was in the eyes of the law. To them, he was a criminal . . . and to Death itself . . . he was Escort Service.

All things aside, I still wouldn't trust the guy as far as I could throw him (and that's _pretty damn far_) . . . . but I . . . still feel sorry for him.

What the hell?

* * *

**Vision 10: Not Done**

"Uhhhh . . . . L?"

Right now I was standing behind L in some room, my hand resting on my hip.

"Are you _sure_ it's such a great idea to let Naomi go to the apartments . . . . _alone? __**With no backup?"**_

"Naomi Misora is a fully trained F. B. I. agent with plenty of self defense under her belt." L answered, "Also, I trust her skills as an investigator. She will be fine . . . and with any luck, with her help, this case will be solved before the day is over."

". . . What do you mean, _"with any luck"_? What if she gets hurt? What if B tries to kill her?"

"He won't. That is not his intent."

"How are you so sure? What if that _is _his intent? I know that what he wants more than anything in the world is to beat you at your own game! What if Naomi _is_ that way: Beating you by killing off your representative? Look, L, the only ones who are investigating the rooms at the Pasadena condo are Naomi and "freaking" Ryuuzaki!_That_, is a set up _waiting_ to happen!"

"Sen . . . if you're so worried, then why don't you fly over and keep watch over the situation?"

My answer was honest and blunt . . . . and most likely the complete opposite of whatever it was he was expecting me to say:

"I haven't finished the book."

L didn't respond. He just stared at me with that big, wide, vacant expression of his . . . . .

. . . . Yeah, I'm weird.

* * *

**Vision 11: The Little Things Give You Away**

You know what, on second thought, maybe I just felt sorry for B because HE WAS FUCKING WEARING L'S FACE FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!

. . . . Then again, I find that I can be a total spaz sometimes, so, maybe not.

Right now, I'm resting in the usual place . . . at least any place that has L within a ten meter radius: right behind him, my arms crossed in front of his chest, and more or less using the little insomniac as a teddy bear. The both of us were sitting in front of a laptop, listening to _somebody_ giving their reports on _something_ . . . while at the same time musing over the LABB Murder Case.

"So . . ." I spoke, "It's done then."

"Yes."

I sighed, tilted my head to the side so that it rested on L's right shoulder, and held him a little closer to me.

"That B really drove me nuts, you know? I had every reason not to trust him, a lot of reasons not to like him, and even more reasons to feel a little sorry for him . . . it was insane."

"Circumstances like these usually occur every once in a while in my line of work, so I don't think I can really tell you whether or not "it" was really "insane"." L said.

"Makes sense . . ." I answered, "Although, the ironic part is, I've been alive for a hell of a lot longer than you have, L . . . and I still find myself so _surprised_ every now and again."

"How long have you been alive?" L asked.

"Can't remember," I answered, "I honestly can't remember . . . I've traveled to a lot of different places . . . cities, states, continents, planets, galaxies . . . a lot of times a whole new dimension entirely . . . and, a lot of the places that I go to have a clock that runs differently than the others . . . like, say if right now I decided to leave here and go into a different world. I would spend five years on that world, and when I come back, it would have only been a few seconds.

"Problem is, I can't figure out if my body is affected by the different clocks of the worlds I visit, or if maybe I'm unconsciously controlling time . . . and eventually, I got confused as to what my exact age was . . . which I think is a kind of easy thing to do, especially if you consider my case: I am immortal, and I can control my physical appearance as well as my body clock, and as such, I have frozen myself to be forever between the ages of 17 and 21. I guess . . . the only aging that really goes on here is in my head . . . that whole "You are only as old as you feel you are" thing, I guess . . . which kind of makes the question "How old are you?" sort of a moot point."

". . ."

Yeah, I could tell you right now, that L still had a lot of questions to ask me . . . and I, meanwhile, had a lot of things to say myself.

"You know what really bothered me? The fact that he almost looked _exactly like you. _I swear, I had to do a double take the first time I saw him . . . it scared me a little."

". . . ."

"Did you ever mistake him for me?" L asked.

". . . . I almost did . . . but then, certain things began to stick out, like the food he ate, and how he ate it . . ."

I could still remember how B stuck his whole hand in the jar of strawberry jam . . . and him crawling around on the floors on all fours . . . the way I saw it, not only did B have a different food obsession than L did, but, somehow something about B told me that he was a bit more of a "hands on" person than L was . . . I mean, come on, you've seen how L handles his food, haven't you?

"Let's say that he didn't exhibit these traits" L said, "Would you still have mistaken him for me?"

"Dunno . . . I'd probably vacillate between the idea of him being you or him actually being B a lot . . . until I got actual proof that he wasn't you. 'Cause you know . . ." I hugged L even more tightly to me, closing my eyes.

"It's the little things that give you away, L . . . it's always the little things."

I finally let him go, and stood up . . . I needed to stretch my legs.

"What if . . ." L began, putting a thumb to his mouth, "An actual doppelganger came along? Someone, or some_thing_ who knows my appearance, traits, and habits exactly?"

"My magic has a built-in self defense mechanism . . . if there was a magical being impersonating you, it'd tell me, and from that point, I'd use my powers to take a good look at your auras . . . everyone has their own special aura, you know."

"Hmmm, I see" L answered, "But what if . . . this creature were also able to copy my aura? Moreover, what if your self defense mechanism doesn't work the way you want it to? What if it doesn't tell you anything? What if it doesn't tell you the truth behind the lie?"

". . ."

Shoot, that was a good one; but . . .

"I–––––––––––– prefer not to worry about that sort of thing. See, when you live a life like mine, you realize that the potential possibilities are endless . . . and thinking about them all the time has a liability to drive any sane man nuts . . . so, the way I see it is: There is nothing to worry about. You are L, and I am Sen. _The end_._"_

There was a moment of silence as L mulled this over in his mind.

"I suppose you're right . . ." he said, finally.

"Maybe," I shrugged, "ANYway . . ." I swooped down and wrapped my arms tightly around his torso in a quick hug

"BYE, SWEETAY!" I let go and bounded over to the far side of the room. I turned to look back at him, put my first two fingers to the side of my forehead, and said _"I'm_ . . ." I pointed my fingers back at L, "going _flying_!_"_

I turned, and made a window appear in the blank expanse of wall in front of me, large enough for anybody of a 5"2' stature to fit through.

I opened the window, got onto the window sill, and jumped, arms spread wide open.

"WAAAAAAAAHOOOOOOOOOO!" I yelled.

Damn, I _loved_ this part!

I let myself fall for several hundred feet, waiting until _the very last second _before I let my wings out of my back, and made a very sharp turn back up towards the sky . . . and I flew . . . I was free.

I let myself float around in euphoria for awhile, before I finally made myself go even faster, and from that point onwards just wandered the skies, having fun.

Oh, and don't worry, I made sure to "close the window" behind me . . . although, I admit, I did almost forget . . .

* * *

**Vision 12: L Stands for "Freak of Nature"**

Flying, I honestly believe, has to be the greatest power I have in my possession . . . the adrenaline rush . . . the wind . . .

A lot of times, more often then not, I'd find myself laughing like a maniac, especially when I'd go into one of my little "Racing Frenzies" . . . those times when I felt like flying as fast as I could (or at least as fast as was possible before all the fun was taken out of it), weaving in and out of buildings, soaring over oceans, racing . . . nobody in particular . . . it was just one of those things I did for the sole reason that they made me feel good, they made me smile . . . and I liked being happy . . .

Eventually, I ended my little flying session and went back over to the place L was currently staying at . . . only to discover that L was nowhere to be found.

"WHAT THE FUCK? _L!"_

I looked in every room in that building, but: nothing. I couldn't find him. Watari wasn't here at the moment . . . I knew they hadn't moved yet, 'cause, well, WHY THE HELL WOULD THEY DO THAT? I'M A FREAKING HUMAN TRACKER FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! And _why_ was I freaking out over this so much? I wasn't L's keeper, he could go wherever he liked, but . . . hang on . . .

I took in a deep breath, and let it out.

I concentrated my energies on finding L's signature aura, his presence . . . .

I ran out of the room I was in, phased through a wall, and took off into the sky.

. . . . After some searching, I flew over a subway entrance somewhere, and found him . . . just in time for me to see L wrap his arms around some black haired woman and soundly getting himself kicked down a flight of stairs.

Needless to say I was thunderstruck. If I were to summarize my facial expression, it'd be like this:

O.O

I gently flew down towards the floor that L had crash landed on . . . and landed myself at some distance away from the scene, where I wouldn't be noticed . . . 'cause, honestly, I didn't know what to make of this.

Shortly after this, that same black haired woman came running down the stairs in the subway.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

You know what, I really couldn't decide whether to laugh, worry, or kick the crud out of Naomi.

From where he lay, face down on the ground, I heard him mumble

"I see . . ."

"Watching videos and seeing it for real is quite different, but now I think I understand."

Poor Naomi was confused.

"Hunh?" She spoke.

. . . . . .

"Um . . . can you stand?" she asked, reaching out toward him.

L looked up at her, and took her hand.

"Thank you," he said, and Naomi pulled him back upright.

"Are you injured? Does it hurt anywhere?" she asked him.

"I'm fine, thank you" L said, not letting go of her hand.

. . . . Huh. That book was right. The two of them _did_ look like a pair of warriors, shaking hands after a battle.

"You are very kind," L said, smiling . . . . sort of.

He let go of her hand and began making his way back up the stairs, once again acting like nothing had happened . . . Jeez, did L even _exist_ here?

"Ah . . . w-wait! Just a second!" Naomi cried out. She ran after him, and circled around him so he faced her again . . .

L's thumb was currently sitting in his mouth. L was clearly, at the moment, unfazed.

"If you aren't hurt, then you'll have to come with me. Sexual assault is a serious crime . . ."

At the last, after several moments just standing there, stupefied, it seems the "fates" have made my decision for me.

I quickly ran behind a pillar, put a hand over my mouth, bent over, and cracked up.

I did my best to do it _silently._

Somehow, through the haze of my hysteria, I managed to catch the tail end of Naomi's speech:

". . . What were you thinking?"

Ah, the question of the millennia: What on earth is going on inside L's head?

As you could probably imagine, that only made me laugh harder. I was leaning against the pillar for support, my shoulders shaking with mirth.

Eventually, I managed to stop laughing, and look back up towards the opening through which L had just exited. I took to the air once again, and, after stealthily moving past Misora, I managed to catch up with L. For a few moments I just floated behind him, smiling . . . then I drew my wings back in and landed back on the ground, and then I just walked alongside him.

For some odd reason, he really didn't seem surprised. Ah, well, whatever.

"L . . ." I started, "you are one of a kind."

"Hmmm, is that so?" he said.

"Yup!" I replied, grinning.

We walked in silence for awhile, then . . .

"She didn't actually hurt you, did she?" I asked, a little worried.

"No."

I frowned. I reached out my right hand and trailed my finger down his back, sort of tracing his spine with my fingernail. Then I moved it back up and crossed it back and forth in a zig-zag motion, looking for . . . Ah, brother.

"Yes she did" I said, annoyed. I laid my palm flat on his back, and poured some of my healing energies through my hand, through his back, and from there throughout his body, healing the pain.

"Sometimes, I worry about you, L" I sighed, removing my hand.

"Really? I was hoping you didn't." L said, sounding a little remotely surprised, "Ah, that reminds me, I hope I didn't worry you too much, when you came back to find that I was gone. I had meant to leave a note, you see, just in case you came back a little earlier than I expected, but it appears I have forgotten. Please accept my apologies."

I didn't respond to that. Actually, I was wondering exactly why had I been so worried, really? I wasn't his girlfriend, he wasn't my pet, and I clearly didn't feel any romantic attachment towards him, so why . . .

The closest thing I could relate it to was . . . well, just one of those things that you loved so much, you wanted to keep track of it, make sure you knew where it was at all times, because . . . you were afraid you were going to lose it, that somebody was going to take it away from you, and you'd never see it again.

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**A/N – You know what'd be a great idea? Goth Girl Barbie. Punk Barbie. Emo Barbie . . . The PINK must DIIIIIIEEEEEEE! I got nothing against blondes, but MOTHER of PINK! IT'S TOO MUCH! TOO MUCH PINK! DIE! DIIIIIEEEEEE!**

**Funny thing is, I don't really hate pink that much. It's just another color in my closet . . . although, to be honest, I'd rather have a little more "Goth" in my wardrobe . . . my "fade into the background" civilian clothing has gotten rather boring to me . . . and I always thought the Goth brand of clothing was so cool!**

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**Sen's Playlist:**

**Obsessed – Mariah Carey**

**Invisible Man – Theory of a Deadman**

**How Can I Live – Ill Nino**

**Raise Your Glass – Pink**

**Break Me Down – Red**

**So Bring it On – The Cheetah Girls**


	5. It Begins

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

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"_Look at me! When you're killing me, you look at me!"_

Josh (_**Saw VI, **_**2009**)

* * *

"_You'll get him to talk?"_

"_I'll get him to sing."_

Batman and Harvey Dent (_**The Dark Knight**_**, 2008**)

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**Vision 13: The Use of the Death Note**

I was lying on my back with my arms crossed behind my head, on a rooftop somewhere, staring at the night sky. The moon was full tonight . . . it was beautiful.

When I was a kid, I had this penchant for daydreaming on a 24-hour basis. My folks would sometimes get on my case about this. Even my older brother told me that thinking too much was dangerous. To paraphrase his words: "It's possible to think yourself stupid."

Why? 'Cuz . . . if you think too much, you will find that, the moment you finally bring yourself out of your thoughts, your little window of opportunity has passed, and you'll have to deal with the consequences.

In short, there's a time to think, and a time to act, and one of life's many lessons is balancing the two fuckers . . . hmmm . . . the Will to Act . . .

Also, I'm usually a loner by nature, and I love finding places where I can be by myself and think . . . and dream . . . and concoct some pretty crazy ideas.

For tonight's first topic, I was currently musing over the Death Note.

A widely known (at least to anyone who's gotten their hands on the manga) supernatural object, it has the power to kill anybody just as long as you know their name and face. It comes with a cute little set of rules, although unfortunately, you're going to have to figure out the majority of them yourself, or otherwise wriggle them out of the Shinigami who originally owned that notebook.

Then there's the Shinigami Eyes . . . sacrifice half your remaining lifespan, and you get to see some poor sap's name just by looking at their face instead of wasting all your time surfing on Google.

. . . . It all begins . . . with a name and a face. The name, so you have control over their body . . . and the face, so that there is no mistake on whom exactly you've killed.

I . . . can't help but wonder . . . is there some kind of hidden message in that? Out of all the homicidal weapons that could have been created for the amusement of some sick and twisted god, one had to be created where you _absolutely had to know _a person's name and face before you killed them. Was it some kind of final testimony? Like somebody was saying: "Well, if you're gonna off this poor sucker, then the least you can do is to take a good look at his face. Look at him . . . this is a real living being, and you're killing him. Knowing his name, knowing his face, knowing the fact that he's an actual person . . . _that_, my friend, will be your last respects to him, because if you don't give him that . . . there's a chance no one else will."

. . . . I wonder . . . . Little Lotte, let her mind wander . . .

. . . . did Kira know about this?

. . . . did he even consider it?

* * *

**Vision 14: The Protagonist and Antagonist Personified**

Light Yagami . . . Light Yagami . . . Light Y.

. . . . Y. Light . . . Light, why? . . . Why Light? . . .

Written as "moon", but read as "Light."

. . .

"Written as "Moon"" huh? Moon Yagami . . . well, if that isn't a gay joke waiting to happen, I don't know what is.

Let's see . . . Satan was an angel . . . his name, Lucifer . . . I think it meant "Light Bringer" or "Light Bearer" or something of that nature . . . he was an angel . . . and yet he fell.

The majority of the Earth's natural light comes from the sun . . . not only that, but the sun has its' own gravitational pull . . . a person born of the sun, would then, therefore, have this . . . _thing_ about them that gravitates other people to them, like a magnet. To the general public, Light is a well-liked character. He's smart, handsome (gag), and talented . . . . (ugh) . . . in short, he's the local Golden Boy, and people ALWAYS wanna get inside his circle . . . (EEEEYYYEEEESSS ROLLIN'!)

I guess he was a pretty okay guy in the beginning . . . maybe . . . I didn't really get to see too much of his good side before this whole DeathNote/Kira mess started . . . alright, so let's just assume that he was a pretty decent guy, instead of a bomb waiting to go off . . . he was good . . . but, from my perspective . . . he went bad . . . .

Hmmm, Light Yagami . . . Light . . . Sun . . . Black Sun . . . Star . . . Death Star . . . wasn't that from a Star Wars movie or something? Yet, it seems fitting . . .

So . . . if Light equals Sun . . . and L is his opposite . . . then, L Lawliet must equal Moon . . . hmmm . . . ahhhh . . . .

. . . .

Chikane Himemiya was the Moon Priestess. She was beautiful, smart, clever, talented, and excelled at everything she did. She came from a pretty good family . . . rich, renowned, and respected. She was always put on this high pedestal by everyone . . .

I closed my eyes slowly, then opened them. I looked up at the moon, so pearly white and beautiful . . .

I reached out towards that moon with my right hand. From my field of vision, the palm of my hand completely obscured the image of the full moon from my sight. I clenched my hand, as if I had actually grabbed on to the moon, brought it down close to my face, opened my hand . . . and saw nothing there.

. . . So beautiful . . . yet so out of reach. Just a goal to be obtained, nothing more . . . or was it? . . .

I let my hand down, resting it behind my head again. L Lawliet was . . . the goal, more or less, of a good portion of the orphans at Whammy's . . . he was someone people looked up to, admired and respected . . . and, on more than a few occasions, hated.

L, the Genius . . . . in my opinion, a guy who usually makes a person think "What the hell?" a lot . . . . he's also the kind of person who either makes people wish they were smarter . . . or want to _become_ smarter . . . He's a bit of a double-edged sword that way.

. . . . Chikane was barely close to anyone . . . not only that, but she also had a fierce, nearly unrivaled determination to get things done . . . those things that she believed needed to be done . . .

The moon circles endlessly around the Earth, like . . . like a guardian? No, no . . . if we were to consider L as a personification of the moon, that'd be way too idyllic, but . . .

Hmmm . . . written as "moon", read as "Light" . . . coincidence, perhaps? Or is it another similarity between the two boys? Or . . . does it hint at the future? For that time when Light goes masquerading around town as a FAKE "L" . . . you can borrow my name, but you will never be me . . . you will never be "Justice" . . .

Hmmm . . . and so Light Yagami equals Sun . . . a tragic one, but a "Sun" nonetheless.

L Lawliet, on the other hand . . . is the Moon.

. . . Suits him . . . man, I have _got_ to introduce this guy to **Batman**!

* * *

**Vision 15: BB Deaths vs. Kira Deaths – Right or Wrong?**

My powers . . . are beyond imagination . . . or rather, no, no . . . please forgive me, I was wrong . . . my powers _are_ of the imagination. They are anything any one man has ever created in the past . . . . and everything that they will make in the future. However, I can't stand the title, "God".

After reading Death Note, I'd bet that you all could make a few guesses why.

. . . . at this point in time I'm flying over to one of the buildings that L's staying at . . . and I'm as tired as all get out. Honestly, I'm kind of amazed that I didn't just drop out of the sky like some dead bird.

I reach one of the windows of the building and pull it open . . . yeah, I'm too tired to muster up the energy to phase through concrete, but I have enough energy to pull a damn window open . . . I'm just that odd.

I float across the room I've entered, my feet grazing the floor. There's a light on in the bedroom. I move towards it. I open the door . . . and there's L, sitting at his computer once again.

As per usual, L acts as if he's been expecting me all along . . . which, knowing him, is probably a pretty accurate statement.

"So, how was your trip?" He asks nonchalantly, biting his thumb.

"EX! HAUSTING!" I huffed, moving behind him and more or less tripping into a bed, face first. I heaved a big sigh into the comforters, and then turned my face towards his . . . back.

"I swear, that guy's like a fucking _machine_. All those people with targets on their heads . . . there've gotten to be so many of them that now I have my clones looking after them, but . . ."

I couldn't finish.

". . . . What's wrong?" L asked.

"I was just wondering . . . how is any of this right? I mean, Kira's mostly going after bad guys, and while I guess I could give him some respect for being so devoted to his cause . . . isn't killing still a bad thing anyway? Those guys . . . I've run into a few people who I've found to be incredibly despicable . . . it was difficult to actually make the decision to fly them away to some other facility."

That was my plan you see. I set up a connection between me and Kira's Death Note, so, that way, whenever he made a killing, I'd know the exact person, place and time that it was going to occur. I'd put a ward over the victims, so that way, the Death Note's magic had no effect on them. After that, I faked their deaths, let them believe that a "freak heart attack" or "Kira" did the job. Once everybody began looking the other way, I transported the victim into another world. New world, new state, new prison, and new memories. As far as they know, nothing happened. They're just another guy's cellmate in Alacatraz, or whatever.

But I digress . . .

". . . I still saved them though, because I thought it was the right thing to do, that . . . that it wasn't fair for anyone to have their lives cut down like that, good or bad. I _saved_ all those people, L . . ."

". . . but I didn't save _everyone_._"_

I think L was aware of this at this point. There were people all over the world who were dying . . . a good chunk of them in a cruel and merciless death. I didn't save them.

I knew that three people were going to die prior to the beginning of the LABB Murder Cases . . . but I didn't save them.

"Those people in the LABB Cases . . ." I murmured, "They were murdered . . . and yet, in a way, they weren't. There was no sign of struggle . . . like the victim just dropped dead. But, no . . . BB was still a murderer, wasn't he? He . . . killed them, and mutilated their bodies . . ."

"On the other hand, those people were supposed to die at those times, anyway, so . . . could I have really saved them?" I closed my eyes, and turned my face back to the comforter, while continuing to make my voice audible enough to hear.

"I'm not supposed to save everyone, L. It's something I have to live with every day, something I have to keep reminding myself of every day . . . with my abilities, I think you could understand why it'd be so easy to forget."

"I can extend people's lifespans . . . but I can't do too many at one time . . . I can't play God, because I'm not God . . . and I don't think I ever want to be." I turned my head back towards him.

"There is just no way I could handle that level of responsibility . . . I know it."

". . . I can't save everyone . . . but does that make it right, L? I can save billions upon billions of people . . . but I've allowed four people . . . no, a lot more than that number . . . agh, I've allowed _so many people to die _. . . How is this right, L? Who am I to decide who gets to cheat death and who can't? . . . Who am I?"

L looked at me from over his shoulder, his dark gaze probing . . .

**.*.*.*.**

What did he say? . . . God, what did he say?

Nothing at all?

Something?

Everything? . . .

. . . There are times when I wonder if shutting up that damn Oracle was really such a smart idea after all.

* * *

**Vision 16: L owns Kira**

Today was the day.

I was sitting on a bench in the main square of the Kanto region of Japan, waiting for the show to begin. The manga version didn't disappoint, the anime version didn't disappoint . . . so, with two out of three probability, it was likely that the live version of this little escapade wouldn't disappoint either.

"We interrupt your programming to bring you an important message from the ICPO."

The voice brought me out of my thoughts, and I looked up at a large screen TV, attached to the face of a building. I saw a man with shoulder-length black hair, wearing a grey suit and a grim face sitting behind a desk.

". . . This is being broadcast all over the world. Japanese voiceover is provided by translator Yoshio Anderson."

"My name is Lind L. Taylor," spoke the man, "Widely known as "L""

Or, as I so fondly call him: "Live Bait"

I let out a breath . . . two seconds into the game and I was already feeling sorry for the poor bastard . . . or, was "guilty" the correct word? At any rate, it didn't really matter.

I closed my eyes, and opened my ears . . . I wanted to be able to the policemens' . . . and, of course, Light's input on this.

" . . . face in public?" "Is he already finished with the case, or something . . .?"

". . . the showdown . . ."

"To the perpetrator" Lind continued, "of these serial murders: You have committed the most abominable act in history. I will personally catch the one behind it . . . "Kira" at any cost. I will not rest until the person or persons responsible are brought to justice."

I smiled, and leaned back in my seat, lifting my bottle of soda to him in praise. You tell 'em, L . . .

"Kira, I _will_ hunt you down, I will _find _you . . ."

"He seems certain he'll catch you!" Ryuk's voice sounded in my head.

"Hmm . . ." Light snorted in derision, "Fool, how can you possibly catch me? It's all the notebook! If you don't have this, you have nothing on me! I cannot be caught!"

Hmmm, is that so? Is that so? . . .

"Kira," Lind spoke, "I think I have a pretty good idea of what you're trying to do and why you're doing it. But what you are doing . . . is evil."

Ooooohhh! You just got _told_!

And, of course, "God" just won't stand for this . . .

"Me? Evil?" Light questioned disbelievingly, "I am justice! I am the God placed here to save the weak and create a perfect world! All those that oppose that God . . . THEY are TRULY EVIL!"

Great, where's my pitchfork and devil's horns?

"I guess you're just too stupid, L. Too bad, this could have been a bit more interesting, if you'd been a bit smarter."

"Let the world see what happens when you go against Kira, L . . ."

Hahahahaha! Well, Light, since L isn't around to answer that little tidbit, let me just say: DON'T UNDERESTIMATE MEH!

I grinned to myself. Wait for it . . . wait for it . . .

I looked up at Lind's face . . . it was getting a little harder to smile, with each second that passed, knowing what was going to happen . . .

Mr. Tailor . . .

"5 . . . 4 . . . 3 . . . 2 . . . 1"

Lind finally collapsed.

After they dragged his body away, L's insignia, black against a white background, came onto the screen.

"Unbelievable . . ." L said, "I did this on the off-chance that you would kill "me". So, Kira, you can kill people without even being nearby . . . if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes I would never have believed it. But, this was the _only _way you could have killed them, wasn't it?"

I could only smile at the thought of Light's dumbstruck face . . . oh, where was a photographer when you needed one?

"Kira, listen to me. The person you killed was actually a prisoner sentenced to be executed at this time today. It was not me."

"What?" Light gasped. Oh look, it seems the poor boy finally found his voice.

"He was a criminal imprisoned without any media attention, so naturally even you didn't know he existed" L continued.

"Heh, he got you there." Ryuk chuckled.

"But I, _L_, am real!" he proclaimed, "So why don't you kill me!"

Oh, this was just too much! As L continued his taunts, I took in the voices around me, grinning devilishly: the police were talking amongst themselves in confusion, Light was just standing there, stock-still, unsure of what to do, and all these people . . .

Finally, I threw my head back, and laughed. I laughed long and hard. I probably attracted a few stares, but who cares? Let them see! This, was a spectacle to _behold!_

Hahahahahaha! EAT IT, LIGHT YAGAMI!

"Well, Kira, it seems you can't kill me after all." L said. Aw, don't sound SO disappointed, L . . .!

Hahahaha!

"So, there are some people you can't kill. You've given me a useful hint. Let me return the favor: I said that this was a worldwide broadcast, but it's really only being shown in the" _Dadadadaaa! _". . . Kanto region of Japan. I was planning on broadcasting this message around the world until we found you, but it looks like that won't be necessary. I now know where you are."

"Heheh, this "L" guy's pretty good!" Ryuk laughed.

Oh, hell YEAH he is! High five, Ryuk! . . . oh, wait, you're not here . . . SORRY!

"The police might have missed this, but I know your first victim was a murderer in Shinjuku. Compared to all the other criminals who died of similar causes, this guy seems insignificant . . . and only the Japanese media reported this incident. That was the only clue I needed to know you're in Japan, Kira! That man was little more than . . . an experiment."

"I got lucky, casting my net out on the most populated area of Japan . . ."

". . . To be completely honest with you, I never expected that things would go this well, but, it won't be too long before I am able to sentence you . . . to death."

My grin faltered a bit at that last statement. "To death", huh? . . .

"Naturally, I'm _very_ interested to know how you're able to commit these murders without being present, but, I don't mind waiting a little bit longer . . . you can answer all my questions when I catch you."

"Let's meet again soon . . . Kira."

I smiled again. Stood up. Stretched.

Yes, lets' . . . and next time, bring me along for the ride, will ya L?

* * *

_"What are you hiding for?"_

_"I do my best work in the dark."_

_"I used to think that too, but what have you ever accomplished from there? Aside from scaring a few punks half to death and putting a few more in jail?"_

_"It all adds up."_

_"Not fast enough. If you really want to make a difference, if you want to change the system instead of just patching it, you can't be subtle, you've gotta step into the sunlight. Take over . . ._

_". . .Where there's no crime, no victims, no pain . . ."_

_"And no choice."_

**.*.*.*.**

_"Who elected you, anyway?"_

_"Who elected _you?"

_"The problem with Democracy is, it doesn't keep you very safe."_

_"It has other virtues, but you seem to have forgotten them."_

_"I didn't forget! I just chose peace and security instead."_

_"You_ grabbed _power!"_

_"And with that power, we made a world where no eight year old boy will EVER lose his parents . . . because of some punk with a gun."_

Batman and Batman _("A Better World" __**Justice League Episode**__)_

* * *

**A/N – And thus, further proof that I do L's character no justice.**

**A/N – Quick question: WHAT IS IT WITH WOMEN/MEN FALLING IN LOVE WITH TWO PEOPLE AT THE SAME TIME? For the longest time, I haven't really had the greatest opinion of them, I mean, I could understand that they were still good people, but COME! ON! Are people really that selfish or just that giving?**

**Classic examples of women/men falling in love with more than one person at a time:**

**Inuyasha with Kagome and Kikyo**

**Bella Swan with Edward and Jacob**

**Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! WHERE'S MY BASEBALL BAT? I need to go hit something . . . *grumbles***

**This little spaz episode has been brought to you by the tenth episode of the sixth season of **_**Smallville**_**.**

* * *

**SEN'S PLAYLIST:**

**Feel Good Inc. – Gorillaz**

**Dare – Gorillaz**

**Dirty Harry – Gorillaz**

**Tell Me Where it Hurts – Garbage**

**Clint Eastwood – Gorillaz**

**The River – Good Charlotte**

**Diary of Jane – Breaking Benjamin**


	6. My Plan

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

**A/N – List of people I'd like to put in a room together:**

**1. Subaru Miyamoto**

**(Manga: Dance! Subaru and MOON – Subaru Solitude Standing)**

**2. Nico**

**(Manga: MOON – Subaru Solitude Standing)**

**3. V (for Vendetta)**

**4. L (really?)**

**5. Lestat de Lioncourt**

**(Anne Rice's **_**Interview with the Vampire**_ **Saga)**

**6. Alucard**

**(Manga: Hellsing)**

**7. Count D**

**(Manga: Petshop of Horrors)**

**8. Batman (again, really?)**

**9. Louis de Pointe du Lac (Anne Rice's **_**Interview with the Vampire **_**Saga)**

* * *

**Vision 17: The Dark Angel**

I don't know when it started, really.

I get these visions of me on a concert stage . . . of course, I know what they must mean, but . . . I don't know how it started. So, I can only hazard a guess: Sometime after I met L, or, perhaps, at some point around the beginning of the Kira Case, I began a career as a singer. It's something I usually do now and again while I'm in the middle of a "job" . . . a sort of "hobby", I suppose.

It's all a really simple thing, when you strip it all down to the fundamental basics: I get up there, I sing . . . and with any luck, I give my audience an experience they'll never forget. Singing is fun for me . . . but it's also . . . something more, something important . . . a thing that isn't to be, and shouldn't be taken lightly.

Half the time I'm up there on that stage I sing original songs of my own creation, and the other half of the time I sing songs from other artists . . . my favorites, my "tickle-my-fancies", my "suits-the-situation-I'm-currently-in" . . . you'd probably call those "Theme Songs" or "Theme Music".

I suppose I really should, and perhaps would, have been arrested by now for plagiarism . . . if it weren't for two things: technically, some of the artists whose songs I sang up there didn't actually "exist" in this world, and, also . . . really now, who could catch me anyway?

. . . You know what, the hell with it, I'm just gonna pay the artists the respects they're due in the pamphlets I give out.

Somehow, during my time here in the world of Death Note, I've managed to get myself landed with the nickname: "The Dark Angel", most likely because of my clothing (most of which were black, and usually veered towards the Gothic variety) and, of course, my wings . . . I really do use those things too much.

Ah well, every singer needs a calling card, don't they?

You know, come to think of it, I think it may have worried some people that there was a punk kid out there somewhere setting up concerts without anyone's permission, rigging the airways on occasion so that she could be sure that her songs would be heard on television, and sending copies of her CDs to music companies with a million dollar bribe (in cash) so she could get those things out on the shelves . . .

Er, for the record, L had nothing to do with this. And while I'm sure that he'll want to arrest my sorry ass for this (Or maybe not . . . technically, I'm not really doing anything wrong . . . am I? Anyway), I can safely assure, both him as well as all you people reading this today, that I have my reasons for this. Also, I feel that I should let you know that I don't actually do this often . . . the "rigging-the-airways", the "bribing-music-companies", the "setting-up-concerts-no-permission" parts . . . I usually do this whole singing bit _legally, _but . . . I wanted to be heard. I wanted to_ make sure _that those people out there knew who I was, that they heard my voice, heard my songs, my message(s) that I was trying to give . . . before things got too crazy for anyone to hear anything at all.

* * *

**Vision 18: Waiting**

You know something? When YOU'RE the guy with all the answers, it's_ really_ hard trying to keep your trap shut until the right time, especially if you have a personal grudge against somebody. Now, don't get me wrong, I want all the Kira killings to stop about as much as anybody else does, and I also want to see Light's sorry butt thrown in jail . . .

But before that happens, I want to see Light taken down with my own eyes. I want to see him humiliated . . . and utterly defeated.

. . . However, first and foremost, comes L's safety. We all know that he doesn't need my help to solve the case . . .

. . . . he just needs my help to stay alive . . .

So, hopefully, you guys won't blame me for getting just the slightest bit antsy as I sat here on the floor of the hotel room, curled up into a ball, while I watched L stare out a window as he mulled the Kira Case over in his head.

I'd been listening to L's thoughts all day. There'd were times when I'd had to struggle to catch up, but . . . agh, just listening to L wander his way from point A to point B . . . when_ I'd_ been at point B this whole time, practically tap dancing on the spot,_ waiting _for him to catch up . . . AAAGGGH! This was so damn frustrating!

*sigh*

. . . God . . . L.

Listening to L's thoughts was truly a treasure to me . . . but sitting around here waiting for something to happen WAS DRIVING ME FREAKING CRAZY! Urrrggggh! Reign it in, reign it in, don't do something you'll regret, don't do anything stupid like remove the word "wait" from the dictionary, just_ hold it in . . ._

"L" Watari's voice spoke.

"What is it, Watari?" L asked, turning towards his computer, which I was currently sitting behind.

"The investigators' report is about to begin."

"Good," L answered, crouching down in front of the screen, "Patch me through."

**.*.*.*.**

I rested my head against L's back, my arms crossed in front of his chest as always.

I was more or less fading in and out of consciousness at the moment, because . . . well, since I already knew what was going to happen today, there was no real reason for me to listen in . . . although . . .

". . . . Before I leave, I have one more request. This is for the Victims Unit, the Media Unit, and the Internet Unit: I'd like you to carefully examine how the Japanese media reported information on these victims."

"I need to know whether or not any images of the perpetrators were shown. Thank you for your cooperation."

. . . .

. . . . Don't look at me, I'm just sitting here . . . playing with L's hair . . . .

**.*.*.*.**

. . . . and now I'm sitting here, curled up in a ball with my arms wrapped around my knees . . . watching L trying to figure Kira out.

He sat in front of me, legs crossed, his hands in his lap . . . sort of fiddling his thumbs . . .

_'At headquarters I claimed that based on the times of all the killings, Kira is most likely a student. Afterwards, as if he was mocking me, he killed forty-six people in two days – one every hour . . . showing us he can choose the time of death as well.'_

_'Until then, he might have been committing the crimes in such a way as to disguise himself as a student . . .'_

_'. . . Have I been tricked?'_

"No," I broke the silence.

L looked at me.

"Kira's a student" I continued, "One with a massive ego . . . and resources."

He blinked . . . and then more silence.

Finally, he asked "Why is he letting me know so much? What's he up to . . .?"

". . . ."

". . . ."

I couldn't answer that. Not because I didn't really know, but because . . .

L turned to his computer, satisfied, I supposed, that I couldn't (or wouldn't) give him an answer, and contacted Watari.

On December 14, 2003, twelve FBI agents entered Japan, on the hunt for Kira.

**.*.*.*.**

"Watari, the F. B. I. have begun their investigation and have given me the list of people working on the case."

L was holding a stack of papers in his hands . . . the list of suspects.

"Yes," Watari answered through the computer, "They've been here for four days."

_'There are 141 people who have access to information regarding the case,' L thought to himself, 'But among these 141 people, and those related to them . . .'_ L threw the stack of papers to the floor, where they spread themselves out in front of him.

_'Kira must be one of them,'_ L concluded.

I turned my gaze down from L's face, to the papers that now lay on the floor. I sat off to L's left, curled up in a ball . . . among the papers, was a file with Soichiro Yagami's picture on it. I got up onto my knees, sat on them, and reached for Mr. Yagami's file. I held it in my hand, while I crooked my head to the right as if I were vaguely interested.

"Yes . . ." I said softly.

* * *

**Vision 19: The Necklace**

I'd bought one today, an L necklace. Metallic silver, hung on a black string. I think L might've been a little worried that I was running around flaunting his insignia around my neck all over the place . . . however . . . the necklace helped me drive a single point home: Understand, I wore the necklace all the time, however, I'd made sure that the necklace was seen in plain sight in every one of my concerts, effectively turning the trinket into one of the "Dark Angel's" trademarks, along with all the black and the wings.

Every one of the general public knew L was against Kira, and I'd made it a point to make sure that everyone knew that I hated him. It freaked people out, understandably, knowing there was a girl who would deliberately mock Kira, challenge him, even dare him on one occasion to kill her (but that is another story) . . . most everyone thought I was insane.

Which, I was . . . not only that, but I was also a girl with an edge. My necklace showed whose side I was on, and the fact that I was still alive proved that there was a way to survive Kira's attacks, they didn't have to side with him just because he was killing everybody . . . and even more than that, it had to show that maybe, just maybe, there was something wrong with Kira's plan . . . his idea of "a perfect world".

And it certainly didn't hurt the fact that I'd always wanted one of these, and now that I had one . . . holding my L necklace in my hand, wearing it around my neck . . . it just makes me want to smile.

* * *

**Vision 20: Raye Penber**

_December 20, 2003 – Evening_

I was leaning against a lamppost in front of the building where Raye Penber and his fiancée, Naomi Misora were staying. My arms were crossed in front of my chest, and my eyes were currently staring up towards the happy couple's window . . . I kind of felt a bit like a wild animal, a cat maybe . . . just waiting for my moment to pounce.

There's that word again, "waiting" . . . things sure are a lot more different than when you're just sitting in front of the TV, knowing you only have to wait a few seconds for the next scene transition.

. . . I was wearing a set of headphones, listening to some songs on my I-pod that I brought with me to pass the time. It shouldn't be long now . . . just wait until after the sun sets, when darkness covers the sky, and the stars appear, as if in rebellion to its' cause . . . not to mention the moon, that blasted, beautiful moon . . .

I let out a sigh, and looked towards the sunset. It was a little surprising that I could still get a good view of it from here, what with all these buildings around, but then, I suppose, it doesn't really matter where you are, a sunset is a sunset, and they're all beautiful no matter where you are.

I stared into the bright light of the sun, and then let my eyes drift over the other colors surrounding it: bits of pink, orange, yellow . . . maybe a little bit of red. Kind of made me wish I took up painting . . . maybe I will, once this is over . . .

. . . it should work . . . just as long as no one knows about this, it should work . . . it has to . . .

Finally, nighttime arrived. Honestly, I'm a little surprised that Raye and Naomi didn't get a little weirded out, or, more to the point, suspicious of the fact that there was a teenage girl standing outside their window for the past . . . oh, maybe hour or so . . . but whatever, it worked for me. The important thing here was that Naomi mustn't know that I'm here, or what I'm up to . . . she can't know, or it'll mess things up.

I pulled out my cellphone: black, as a lot of the things I owned were . . . I was starting to think that I had a slight obsession with the color.

I dialed Raye's number, and held the phone up to my ear. After a few rings, he finally picked up, with a wary

"Hello?"

"Hello," I said in a soft, calm, even voice, "Is this Mr. Raye Penber?"

". . . Yes"

"Ah, good, Raye . . . is your fiancée there? Miss Naomi Misora?"

There was a tense moment of silence . . . poor sucker probably thought I was Kira by now . . . then again, maybe not.

". . . Yes"

"Hmm, if it's alright with you, Mr. Penber, I'd like you to make an excuse to leave the room. Tell her you have to meet up with a partner, tell her that you're talking over some classified information with L, I don't care, just_ make sure that she doesn't know what's going on."_

". . . and make sure that you don't make her suspicious, either . . . I've heard that that woman is very good at her job."

Raye didn't respond . . . just in case . . .

"I'm not Kira, Mr. Penber . . . you're safe." For now, anyway.

". . ."

I heard some indistinguishable voices from his end of the line, then the sound of a door closing, and finally Raye's voice: "Alright, what do you want?"

"Come outside the building, Mr. Penber . . . I want to talk with you."

I hung up, slipped the phone into my pocket, and waited with both hands in my pockets as I leaned against the lamppost, staring off into space this time.

I looked over to my left, and saw Raye exiting the building, his eyes on me, hard, untrusting, and cautious. I blinked, and continued to wait.

After a while, he made the decision to walk over to me. As soon as he got close, he asked "Who are you?"

I moved away from the lamppost, and started walking, motioning with my hand for him to come with me. We walked a few blocks down the street, and turned into an alley where, hopefully, no one would care to eavesdrop on us. I turned to Raye and said "Hello Mr. Raye Penber, my name is Senyaita Boulibashi. But please, call me "Sen"." I waited a few moments for him to take in this information, then continued, "Mr. Penber, in seven days, you and your compatriots are going to die."

Raye's eyes widened in shock and his right hand moved unconsciously inside his coat . . . probably reaching for his gun most likely.

"W-What? Why are you . . . How . . ."

"I will say this once again, Mr. Penber,_ I am not Kira." _I said firmly, narrowing my eyes at him in a way that said 'I dare you to make that assumption again.'

". . . I'm just a girl with information, and with any luck, if my plan works, you and the rest of your comrades out there looking for Kira will be able to get out of this mess alive."

His hand didn't move from inside his coat. He still didn't trust me.

"Kira has plans for you, Raye" I spoke, "With your "help" he thinks he'll be able to get away from L, and possibly in the process make a fool out of him . . . He won't. Not if I, or L, for that matter have anything to say about it."

His arm relaxed a little, although it still didn't move from it's spot.

"Raye . . . if I'm going to go any further with this, I need you to trust me. Lives are at stake . . . including the life of your fiancée, Naomi."

Raye's eyes widened at that statement. There was a few seconds of still silence, and then he finally moved his hand away from his gun, and let it rest at his side.

"Thank you." I said softly. I put my hands behind my back, and then started walking in front of him, back and forth, saying "I can't really say I'll be able to do much here . . . there are some things that I'm not allowed to do regarding the Kira case . . . however, I_ can_ bend the rules a bit . . . Mr. Penber . . ."

I turned to face him, and lifted my right hand out in front of me, my palm facing upwards. I clenched my fist, and caused it to burst into white flames.

"I can help you survive the Death Note . . ._ Kira"_

Raye just stood there, in shock, clearly not being able to believe what he was seeing in front of him. Eventually, he managed to get a hold of himself, and ask "The Death Note?"

"Yup," I said frankly, "The Death Note. A notebook of death. That is the weapon that Kira is using to kill hundreds, maybe thousands of lives every day." I put my flames out, and let my hands fall down to my sides.

"The person whose name is written inside that notebook will die," I said, "The notebook will not take effect unless the writer has a person's name and face in their mind. If the cause of death is written within the next 40 seconds of writing the person's name, it will happen. If the cause of death is not specified, the person whose name you wrote down will simply die of a heart attack. After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds."

". . . If you haven't already figured it out by now, I think you should know that you've gotten yourself into some pretty deep shit today, Mr. Penber. Think back . . . was there ever a time where you've been forced to give a _complete stranger _your real name?" I asked as I watched his eyes widen in realization.

The guy looked like he was going to choke, but he managed to ask "But, wait . . . how . . . how did you . . ."

"May I presume that you're going to ask me, "How did I know?" and "How are you going to help me?"" I asked him. "I know a lot of things Mr. Penber, some of which I really wish I didn't know . . . as for the protection of you, the other eleven FBI agents, and your fiancée, well, you've clearly seen that I am not normal. I have a gift, and that gift grants me the power to do a lot of things . . . including giving other people the ability of being invulnerable to the Death Note."

Raye stared at me, and then, after awhile, said "You know what's going on . . . you know what Kira is doing, and how he is doing it . . ."

". . . so why haven't you stopped him?"

I looked down from his face, not saying anything, and then looked up into the sky.

"There's a story to be told, Mr. Penber," I said, "A lesson to be learned . . . so unfortunately, I have to let some things slide . . . however, that doesn't mean I'm letting Kira get away with it." I looked at him. "All those people that Kira killed? They're not really dead. I faked their deaths, let Kira have his moment of glory, and put them somewhere else . . . to live or die, that's somebody else's decision to make. Not mine, and not Kira's. Also . . ."

I closed my eyes, and breathed some air out of my nose in a silent sigh. I opened my eyes again and continued

_"This isn't my story. _I'm not allowed to steal away somebody else's glory. I can change a few things, within reason, but I can't totally steal away the spotlight. There are certain events in the past, present, and future that I can't change, but it's just as well. If there was somebody out there flying around fixing every single thing that went wrong anywhere, how would anybody learn anything?"

I clasped my hands together, and said "That is the reason why I'm asking you to keep our meeting, and my plan a secret." Raye blinked in surprise, while I just ignored his show of emotion and put my hands together behind my back again and started pacing the ground in front of him.

"You will be put into hiding. You will be given a new name, a new face, and a new voice. A few weeks after the limelight has been driven off of you guys, you will all be given limited contact with your families, so long as they promise not to say anything. The first call you make, you will do with your original voices, so that way your family will know that the whole thing isn't a trick, but afterwards your voices will revert back into the artificial ones that I will arrange for you, and will stay that way until the Kira Case is over, and you all are safe."

". . . There's just one thing I don't understand." Raye said somberly.

I looked back at him, stopping my pacing.

"Why do I have to keep this a secret from Naomi? If you're just going to hide her anyway . . ."

"I have to keep up appearances," I answered, "Her involvement in this case, and you know she will get herself involved once she finds out you're dead, will play a vital role in helping L catch Kira. That being said . . ."

I turned towards him, and reaching my hands out, palms facing forward out towards him in a "stopping" motion. "Remember, your motivation is: This man is killing me, I know who Kira is, but I won't be able to tell anyone else, I must stop him, I must see his face, _I need to see Kira's face before I drop dead!"_

I let my hands back down and put them in my pockets. As I walked away from him out into the dark street I called over my shoulder "I hope you're a good actor, Mr. Raye Penber."

* * *

**A/N – What do you think, bad dialogue? I'm not sure I did a good job with Raye's character. Anyway, left a link to Sen's necklace on my profile**

**A/N - Things that (to my knowledge) L has been compared to so far:**

**1. A Cat**

**2. Gargoyle**

**3. Owl**

**4. A BIRD**

**5. A Frog**

**6. A Monkey**

**7. Gollum**

**. . . . L, you are one unique individual.**

* * *

**SEN'S PLAYLIST:**

**Losing My Religion – R. E. M.**

**L – Death Note Soundtrack **

**I Will Not Bow – Breaking Benjamin**

**Dragon Palace – Okami Soundtrack**

**Victory – Bond**

**L no Kabe - Death Note Soundtrack**


	7. Act

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

**_A/N - Alphabetical codenames that (to my knowledge) have not been used yet in any Death Note FanFic:_**

**D**

**E**

**F **(. . . not sure anyone will want to claim this . . . considering it's annotation and . . . well, if you watched the movie, the last guy who had this name . . . . died)

**G**

**H**

**I** (Oh, I would so love to see that! XP)

**O**

**P** ( . . . . THAT is an awkward codename! . . . ah, brother!)

**Q**

**T** ( . . . you can if you want, but for some reason it reminds me of Teru Mikami)

**U**

**W **( . . . that is, if Watari hasn't already claimed that one, yet)

**X** (I suppose . . . but again, reminds me of Mikami)

**Y **(heheh . . .)

and, finally . . .

_**Z**_

. . . I think that last one could be a pretty cool codename! Well, anyway . . .

* * *

**Vision 21: Execute**

After I'd left Raye Penber, I soon started having misgivings about my plan.

Would it really work? Should I have explained myself better? Would Raye try to conduct an investigation on me? Would either he or I end up screwing over the foreseeable future (by "I just read this out of a comic book" standards) due to our actions caused by our meeting?

I believe Raye knew that I wouldn't kill him. I believe that Raye believed me when I said that I wasn't Kira . . . I wasn't sure if, right now, he was having second thoughts about that idea, but right now it was too late to go back and double check my work. I needed to make sure that I didn't arouse suspicion from Kira, or catch Ryuk's attention. For all I know, he'd probably tell Light that there was a weird kid (and by weird, I mean supernatural) hanging around Penber and that he should watch out for her . . . probably just to watch him squirm for his own amusement . . .

Maybe . . . UGH! Have I mentioned how much I hate waiting? There's too much time to think, too much time to worry, and_ definitely _enough time to start spazzing!

Agh, anyway, for the next week I needed to make sure that I stayed below the radar until the time came to smuggle Raye Penber out from under the guillotine.

**.*.*.*.**

_December 27, 2003_

When the day arrived, I flew away from L's place and went over to Raye's apartment. I didn't know at what time Kira was going to commit his murder, so I had to keep a close watch on Raye until he arrived at the train station. I kept my distance, turning myself invisible when I needed to, so I could be sure that Raye never knew I was around.

A thought had occurred to me while I was trailing him: Maybe he decided to disregard my warning, maybe he thought that it might be a trick set up by Kira, perhaps he believed that he and the rest of the F. B. I. agents in Japan weren't going to die at all . . . I couldn't be sure that he actually thought this, and honestly, I really didn't feel like reading his mind to make sure, because in the end it really didn't matter. I'd make sure that my little pawn actor would say his lines like a good boy, begin my grand but subtle entrance, and get us both the heck out of there while no one was looking.

At last, the both of us entered the Shinjyakueki underground city. I alternated between blending in with the crowd around Raye and turning invisible as I continued to follow him. Minutes later, a young man in a hoodie came up behind Raye Penber and spoke to him, freezing him in his tracks with shock . . . and perhaps a bit of fear . . . with a dash of Death Note magic.

Raye, meet Kira. Kira, meet Raye. Let the game begin.

I stood a few feet away from the two, invisible, watching the scene unfold with hard, cold eyes, my hands in my pockets. I looked over to my right, and watched a man in glasses sweeping the entrance to some café double over and crumple to the ground. My clone came, invisible of course, pulled some reality bending voodoo and whisked the man away, leaving a dead, carbon copy of the man in his place.

". . . I don't mind if I have to sacrifice some people so I can prove to you that I am Kira."

_'I do.'_ I thought as I glared at the back of his head.

"But, that man has been tried for several rapes, but he was never found guilty due to lack of evidence. I'm only purifying this world."

Whatever helps you sleep at night, Light. Whatever helps you sleep at night.

I watched him threaten Raye with the life of his fiancée, and after a minute, hand him a folder, and walk away. Raye stood there for a few moments, putting on the transmitter that Kira gave him and listening to his instructions. He walked over to a train on the Yamanotesen line. When he got on, I let out my wings and took to the air once the train started moving and followed him.

I flew over the train for a few moments, and then flew over to the side, parallel to the window across from the seat Raye was sitting in. I looked through that window, and saw Raye pull out several envelopes out of the folder Light had given him. At that moment, a chilling thought ran through my mind:

**"The human who uses the notebook [Death Note] can neither go to Heaven nor Hell."**

My mind was blank for a few moments, but I quickly managed to shake off the trepidation. If I had my way, that particular rule wouldn't apply to anyone . . . including Light.

Yeah, you heard me. He may be an ass, but I don't think anybody deserves an eternity of_ nothing_ _. . . _ugh, this is why I'm not cut out for law enforcement.

Indecisive, impulsive, and stubborn, with a need to analyze every move I made, trying to make sure that I did the right thing . . . a need to see the good in everyone, and see both sides of an issue . . . so that I didn't make an ass of myself in the end.

I closed my eyes for a moment, and then squeezed them tighter together, and turned my head off to the side. I stared off into space for a few seconds as I continued to follow the train, wondering . . . God, what am I doing?

Ah, whatever, this wasn't the time to start second-guessing myself. I'd made a decision, and I was going to follow through with it to the end.

I looked back through the window, and saw Raye writing on the pages of the Death Note. When he finished, he put the envelopes containing the pages back into the folder, along with the transmitter he'd been wearing. He put the folder on the rack over his seat, and then sat back down.

Alright, this is it . . . just thirty more minutes.

Both Raye and I continued the trip, on edge. He was tense, a little afraid, confused, worried, and wondering what the hell was going on (at least from what I could infer). I, on the other hand, was also tense, and worried, but fully determined. Kira wouldn't win. No matter what he did, he wouldn't win.

The train stopped, and I flew away a few feet, and hid behind a pillar. I looked around the pillar to see Raye stepping off of the train.

The moment both of his feet hit the ground, I spoke to him, telepathically:

_'Raye, now!'_

For the second time today, Raye froze where he stood. His body shook a little from the first tremors of the heart attack . . . but he felt no pain.

Losing my patience, without waiting for Raye to come out of his surprised stupor, I "yelled" in his ear:

_'Now, you idiot!_ ACTION!_'_

He caught on, and then clutched at his chest as though he were really having a heart attack. After the first tremor, I'd stopped the heart attack completely . . . it was all on him, now . . .

He fell to his knees, supporting himself with one arm, his breath coming out in choked gasps, and then he fell over on his side. With an "effort" he forced himself to look back inside the train, trying to see the face of his "killer".

"Ya . . . Light Yagami!" He gasped.

Yup, Mr. Penber, there's your proof. Sweet little Light Yagami is Kira.

"Farewell, Raye Penber." Light told him coldly as the doors of the train closed. When they sealed shut, Raye let himself fully collapse on the floor in a sprawling heap.

Farewell, Raye Penber, farewell . . .

_**PSYCHE!**_

I ran out from behind the pillar, calling out "Oh my god! Sir, are you alright? Sir!" I shook him roughly by the shoulder, trying to "wake him up" as people started crowding around Raye's body.

"Sir? Sir!" I yelled, and then shakily put a hand to my mouth. "Oh . . . oh my god . . . oh god . . ."

"Somebody call an ambulance!" A man yelled.

Under all the hullabaloo, while I kept up the ruse as the mild-mannered, freaked out teenager, I worked a little magic on Raye and I, mentally reassuring him that everything was going to be alright, just stay calm and follow my lead. In a few minutes we ran away from the scene, invisible, with me dragging Raye along by the hand, and the corpse of his clone laying on the ground surrounded by so many people, along with my clone, who was slowly going into shock.

I looked over my shoulder at the crowd of people, "myself" and "Raye" . . . An ambulance would probably be arranged for my clone as well, but that wasn't really a big problem. If it came to that, then she would just go along with the movements and have herself checked out of a hospital later that day. If the doctors insisted she stay, then she'd pull some mind-warping voodoo on them and make them forget that she ever existed.

And so we ran. I didn't allow us to stop until we ran through the back entrance of a building somewhere, hopefully out of the way of any wandering eyes. We both bent over, panting, our hands on our knees. Raye looked up at me and asked:

"What . . . are . . . you?"

I glared back up at him, a little bit annoyed, and answered harshly:

"I'm the kid that saved your life."

I looked back down, panting a little more, and while waving my hand at him, continued:

"No more questions, please. The both of us have gotta figure out where we're going to put you for the next few days."

Raye didn't say anything . . . guess he was deciding to trust me once again. We spent the next few minutes catching our breath, and then sitting down and discussing housing arrangements.

* * *

**Vision 22: Concert**

I walked out onto the stage, a microphone in my left hand, and the bright lights shining in my face. I held my hand over my eyes, blocking out the light.

Ah, so it was nighttime.

I smiled. My audience came here for one thing, and one thing only: Entertainment. And I was going to give it to them.

It was simple: Shock, scare, seduce, and entice them . . . although, maybe not in that order. Lure them in, invite them to your world . . . and make them want to never ever leave.

I lifted my right hand, and waved it around in the air, yelling

"HELLO EVERYBODY, THIS IS SEN BOULIBASHI! IF YOU'RE HERE TONIGHT, THEN THAT MEANS YOU'RE A REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, A FORCE THAT CAN NOT AND _**WILL NOT** _BE DENIED, AND . . . ."

"You're most likely going to get pulled over by a cop later for reckless driving. Leave it to the pros, kids, leave it to the pros . . ." I said, letting my arm down and shaking my head while I walked back and forth across the stage.

"But enough about that!" I said, tilting my head to the right, a little mischievous smile on my face. I lifted my right hand back up, and snapped my fingers. Immediately, all the lights in the stadium went out . . . along with any electronical devices within a five mile radius. The air was dead silent. The people in the audience shivered a little in their coats . . . it was cold out tonight. A few people squirmed in their seats, anxious to see what was going to happen next.

They all waited . . . and waited . . .

Nothing. Silence.

People were beginning to get a little freaked out. The sudden inability to see, along with the fact that the whole world seemed to have decided to shut up for this precise moment, only sustained its' thrill for so long.

One person scratched at their arm, and then scratched it again. What the hell? Was that a mosquito?

There was some murmuring in the crowd:

"Hey, where are you!"

"Over here!"

"Hey, are you okay!"

"What the fuck, did she just leave us out here to dry?"

"I didn't pay for this!"

"Ow! That was my foot!"

"Where are you, I can't see!"

"Wait, here, I got a lighter . . ." Some dude flicked on his lighter and moved it in front of his face, looking for his friend. He found her, and the two of them locked eyes for a moment before their gaze dropped to the girl's shoulder, where a one-foot-long, two-inch wide centipede was currently resting, slowly climbing down her arm.

A piercing scream wrenched the air, and soon everybody else began to panic as slowly light filled the stadium again, this time from the moon.

There was vermin everywhere! Mosquitos, spiders and other bugs of many different kinds; rats, lizards, bats, and . . . oh, god, _snakes_ . . .!

More people started screaming, a few attempting to kill some of the wildlife that crawled all around them. They pushed, each other, shoved each other, trying to run away. A few guys even hit each other. However, once they reached the doors, they discovered that they were locked in!

A bat perched itself on some chick's shoulder. The girl looked at it and cried out in fear, burrowing her face into her boyfriend's chest. The bat opened its' mouth, exposing its' teeth, and then closed it and flew away.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS?"

"What in the world?"

Suddenly, their attention was drawn away from the insects and animals by a loud, crashing thud coming from the stage. The stage lights had turned back on, and they could see Sen crouched on top of a huge rectangular machine . . . part of the sound system, maybe?

Her left knee was bent out in front of her, while her right stretched out behind. Her arms reached out underhand behind her, palms spread. On her face was a devilish looking expression, with eyes that were narrowed into slits and a grin that could match the Joker's.

She threw her head back, along with the rest of her torso, threw her arms up out and open wide and yelled in a hoarse voice:

_"ALL ABOOOOOAAAAAAARD! HAHAHAHA!"_

With that, the opening chords of Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train" began to play. Coming out of their shock for a split second, a good part of the audience noticed that all the vermin that had previously been terrorizing them mere moments ago had disappeared, leaving behind only a trail of smoke . . . right before their attention was brought back to the girl on the stage.

What . . .?

_Da! Da!_

_Da! Da!_

_DUM! . . ._

_"Aye!" _Sen crouched over, her figure suddenly turning shadowy, and then black, with white, glowing eyes and white razor sharp teeth. Her hands were curved in front of her, sort of claw-like, cat-like, animal like . . . a beast.

Then came the rattling sound. Sen pulled herself back upright. She stood up straight, with her head tilted to the left, as if she were wondering about something. She was slowly turning visible now, the color of her skin, coming into light, her eyes revealing their true color, and her teeth . . . they were normal.

She raised her fist in the air, which was engulfed in a white flame that had streaks of color coursing through it. She looked at it, and then back at the audience right before she grinned devilishly once more, and, in time with the beginning strums of the guitar, threw her fist behind her and smashed it into some sort of weird, rectangular, black machine that had blinking lights and a lot of buttons and switches.

The volume, after that, became incredibly loud. The notes of the song was pounding inside the heads of many in the audience . . . yet, it was almost enjoyable for some reason.

Sen looked up at them, smirking, and raised an eyebrow. Behind her, black, almost humanoid creatures emerged from the ground and made their way off the stage towards the audience.

By the time the more upbeat part of the song had began, everybody knew that they were safe, and that the fun had truly started.

* * *

**Vision 23: Who Loves L?**

Soichiro Yagami sat in his chair behind a large desk. His elbows were propped up on the wood, and the fingers of his hands laced together and shaped themselves in an arc which he held close to his face as he slouched a little in his seat. His brown eyes were sharp, clear, and strict. His voice reverberated inside the heads of the police officers participating in the Kira Investigation whom he was addressing.

"We now know that Kira doesn't just target criminals . . . he'll kill anyone who opposes him. It's quite possible that we may all be killed by Kira."

L and I were listening through the intercom. L sat in front of his computer while I clung to his back like a freaking baby koala.

"Think of your own lives, your families, and all the others you'd be living behind. If anyone wants to leave this investigation, now is the time. You won't be demoted if you choose not to stay. You have my word. But if you're not absolutely sure, then we don't need you. I've already left your reassignments up to the Vice-Director."

"But to whoever is willing to fight against him, and possibly even sacrifice everything I've mentioned to fight Kira . . . be here at five o'clock when I return from my meeting. That is all."

Spare no effort and hold nothing back . . . I doubted that there was one person sitting in that conference room who wasn't feeling the slightest bit anxious, nervous, scared . . . and more than likely just the slightest bit conflicted.

Mr. Yagami laid his hands on his desk, palms splayed out, and pulled himself up from his chair. Without looking back, wearing an expression that seemed to say that he was preparing himself for the worst, he exited the conference room, and closed the door shut behind him as a sea of soft, tense voices rose up behind him.

"So . . . what are you going to do?"

". . . I'm not sure."

**.*.*.*.**

When Soichiro Yagami returned, a grim look was engraved onto his face. He checked his watch for a moment, and then opened the door . . .

It was almost depressing to see how much the Kira Investigation members had dwindled . . . yet . . .

"Welcome back, Director." One of the men . . . soft, tussled hair, warm brown eyes, innocent smile (poor sap . . .)

. . . must be Matsuda.

"Only five men" Soichiro began, "No, five men who are willing to put their lives on the line to confront evil . . . I'm glad."

"But I wonder . . . how can we continue the investigation while we're this understaffed?"

"Director," Matsuda piped up "If you include L and Watari, that makes eight."

"The fact that you've chosen to stay means that you all have a strong sense of justice . . . it is only you, with your strong conviction that I trust." L said solemnly, his voice almost monotone.

I noticed some of the policemen tense up a little, and a couple of them looking at each other warily.

"Uh, h-hold on a second," one of the men spoke . . . a man with a sort of afro-like hairstyle . . . hm, Aizawa.

A dark, distrustful look was on his face as he continued "L said he's decided to trust us now, but we don't trust him!"

Possessively, I clutched L's body a little closer to me, my eyes narrowing slightly at Aizawa. Oh great, here it comes . . .

A man sitting behind Aizawa was next to speak. What was his name again . . .?

"Look L, all of us agreed to put our lives at risk to bring Kira to justice. So I hope you understand what this means: we're really sticking our necks out here! You of all people should know what it means to risk your life against Kira."

Aizawa took it up from there.

"And yet somehow _you_ don't ever have to show your face, do you L? You just give the orders . . ."

I gritted my teeth. AIIIIIZAAAAWAAAAAAAAAA!

"I don't see how you expect us to work with you under those conditions!"

"We will pursue Kira," another man said . . . I think his name was Ukita. "But not with your assistance."

"And we're not the only ones. Many people doubt you or even oppose you."

_WHAT?_

Well, it kind of . . . ah, forget it_ – WHAT?_

"Definitely! Twelve members of the F. B. I. are dead because of you. You can't argue the circumstances."

"There are some criminal psychologists who are saying that "L is Kira." They claim that L has multiple personalities." Said Mr. Yagami, almost silently agreeing with them.

. . . . . . . . .

**_WHAAAAAAAAAAAAT?_**

How the fuck . . . how DARE they insult L like that! Urrrrrg! Damn it, I want to hit somebody . . . but, in a way, it kind of makes sense . . . kinda hard to trust somebody who's always working in the shadows . . . guess that's why some people had a hard time putting up with Batman . . . . but . . . still! URRRRRRRRGGGGGH!

Agh, calm down, calm down, calm down, it's not that bad, calm the fuck down before you hurt somebody!

"The one who ordered the F. B. I. to move was L" Mr. Yagami continued, "And the F. B. I. agents who came to Japan are now all dead."

. . . Kinda.

"L would have known who they were . . ."

. . . . I hate it when faulty accusations start to make sense . . .

"And that's not all" Three of the men in the Investigation started, "He may have staged everything up 'til now by himself! The fact that he's been able to solve any case without revealing himself adds weight to that theory."

HEY!

". . . L" Soichiro began again, gently "If all of us are going to work together on this investigation, and you truly meant what you said about trusting the six of us . . . if you're willing to join forces with us and help us catch Kira then I'm asking you to please come to headquarters so we can all meet in person."

"Yeah, if you showed your face and worked alongside us, it'd be easier to work with and trust you."

". . ."

". . . the thought had already crossed my mind." L responded nonchalantly. "Watari . . ."

Watari turned the laptop around on the desk, the screen now facing the remaining members of the Kira Investigation.

**.*.*.*.**

The two of us were in a brightly lit room, in the upper levels of the Teito hotel, which wasn't that far off in distance from the Kira Investigation Headquarters. I stood a few feet back from L, watching him as I always did.

He was thinking . . . calculating . . . devising . . . hell, maybe even plotting for all I knew. I walked up to him, reached my hands under his arms and crossed them in front of his chest in my usual hugging pose. I lay my head on his shoulder, staring out into the darkness of night for awhile . . .

My gaze drifted, and I saw L's hand clenched into a tight fist. Was he a little angry, perhaps? Or perhaps, determined? Dead set on facing his challenger head-on, like any warrior would.

My hands slid down from his shoulders, just barely grazed the shirt on his chest, and then finally stopped at his clenched fist. Gently, my hands embraced that fist, enclosing it with two soft palms, and two sets of long fingers. I watched myself do this though half-lidded, seemingly tired eyes.

Trying to comfort him, a little, I suppose . . . but maybe he didn't need comforting. I squeezed his hand a little, and didn't let go for awhile . . .

**.*.*.*.**

"Seems like they'll be here any second now . . ." I sighed softly, almost dreamily.

"Hm, really?" L replied, not taking his black eyes off the dark horizons before him, littered with tiny glittering "stars".

"Mmmmmm . . . yeeeeah." I smiled, and removed myself from his person. "Well, I'd better get going!"

L turned his head to see me walking away from him, towards a side door that opened onto a flight of stairs. I bet if I turned around right now, I'd see him actually raising an eyebrow at me.

"So you're not going to stay behind and watch?"

"Heheh, ah nah, I think it's best if I leave this part up to you . . . I mean, after all, I'd hate to steal the limelight away from you . . . L! Kun!" I turned my head around to the left to grin back at him.

"Besides, I got some stuff I gotta do . . . things to do, people to see, hell to raise . . . plus there's that pizza guy that I'd called about an hour ago . . . I wanna intercept him before he actually makes it to the room . . . ooooh boy, that'd be awkward, him running into the new headquarters of the Kira Investigation . . . Hmm hmmm . . ."

"But you know what?" I said, lifting my right index finger up in the air, my left hand holding my right elbow. "Before I gooooooo . . ."

I strode back across the room towards L. I gave him a big, wide, warm smile, and brushed the back of my first two right fingers along his cheek.

"I just want to say . . ."

I removed my hand, and lightly punched him in the arm, smirking.

"Knock 'em dead kid."

I grinned my little mischievous smile at him, and then walked out of the room. I walked down several flights of stairs . . . perhaps five . . . right before I stopped on a landing, turned on my left heel, my right leg up in the air at a ninety degree angle from my other leg, and turned myself invisible, and then more or less Apparating myself back up to L's room.

Heh, yeah, like I was actually going to miss_ this_ . . . besides, I wouldn't really have to worry about Naomi until the sun came up, and that wasn't going to be for another six hours . . .

* * *

**A/N – Somehow I feel like this chapter has a lot of sorry attempts at trying to describe a person's physical actions . . . but then again I could just be paranoid.**

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Somebody Else – Vanessa Rojo**

**Crazy Train – Ozzy Osbourne**

**Misa no Uta – Death Note Soundtrack**

**Get Out Alive – Three Days Grace**

**Thanks for the Memories – Fall Out Boy**

**Topless – Breaking Benjamin**


	8. The Proverbial Fly on the Wall  Part I

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**_

**A/N – During this vision, any and all text written in bold will be a random outburst/comment from Sen. Most of this is just a mixture of dialogues from the anime and the manga. Hopefully Sen will make this a bit more interesting . . .**

* * *

"Sometimes when you're dealing with extraordinary people, you need to take a risk"

- Martha Kent _(Smallville)_

* * *

**Vision 24: L and the Team take the Stage**

The remaining members of the Kira Investigation team stood in shock for a few seconds at the spectacle in front of them. I suppose you couldn't really blame them . . . I mean, you hear talk of this master sleuth and the last thing you'd probably imagine would be a twenty-something-year-old, who honestly just looked like a lazy teenager who spent all his time locked up in his room away from the world, with messy black hair, a white T-shirt, and a pair of jeans.

"I am L"

His dark penetrating gaze was trained on the five men currently in front of him. The expression on his face was almost decidedly bored . . . or perhaps, just disinterested. Meanwhile, the sole of his right foot was rubbing against his left ankle . . . curing an itch, maybe.

'This is _him?' _Mr. Soichiro thought disbelievingly.

L scratched the back of his head, his face looking even more incredibly bored than just two seconds ago; he wasn't even looking at them anymore, just waiting for an answer.

"He's nothing like I'd thought he'd be." Matsuda murmured softly.

The rest of the team looked at each other in confusion. Eventually, Soichiro decided to go along with it and introduced himself:

"I am Yagami, the Chief of Police of the NPA." He held up his ID badge.

The rest followed his lead:

"I'm Matsuda"

"Aizawa"

"Ukita."

"Mogi."

L stared at them for a few seconds. The expression on his face almost seemed to say: "Are you serious? Please . . ."

"I'm very sorry we're late," Mr. Yagami said "Currently, the five of us are . . ."

"Bang!" **Dead.**

That little act of comedy aroused a small outburst from some of the other men:

"Huh?"

"That's not funny!"

"What the hell was that?"

L's index finger was pointing towards the lot of them, his thumb sticking up in the air so as to make his hand into a sort of "gun." . . . I guess it was a good thing L didn't know how to use spirit energy, otherwise he'd end up nailing all of them with a Spirit Gun attack.

**"**If I were Kira, you'd be dead already, Mr. Yagami, Chief of the NPA" L said point-blank, as if this should have been obvious to him. He raised an eyebrow at him.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH! XD**

Soichiro gulped, almost guiltily, I think . . . although, for the most part, he seemed kinda nervous.

"As you may know, Kira must know the name and face of his victim to kill him." L said, turning to his right, away from them, while never shifting his gaze from their general direction.

"Logically speaking, it is impossible to kill someone only by knowing their name and face, but that's just what Kira's been doing. We can only conclude that Kira uses a supernatural killing method."

**Yeah, especially if you got "supernatural" clinging to your back, like, every day of the week!**

L tilted his head back. "We are the only ones left pursuing Kira. So please don't do not give away your names so recklessly. Let's value our lives and . . . be more cautious." He walked away.

**. . .**

**HAHAHA! Only been through the door for like, five minutes, and already, every single one of them got owned by L! Haha!**

"He needs to know names?" Matsuda, surprised, looked towards Mr. Yagami in confusion, "Is that true? I've heard that he only needs to know the face."

"There's no way to verify this is related," Mr. Yagami replied, "but criminals whose names were either wrong or kept hidden survived some mass killings, so the headquarters came to that conclusion."

**Yup . . . lucky bastards.**

"But, judging only based on that . . . isn't it too . . ."

L looked back at them from the corner of his eye again. This time his expression seemed to say "I have no time for disagreements right now, so fucking trust me already, will you?"

"Let's get right down to business." L said, looking back towards them "Turn off your cell phones and laptop computers, and put them on this table." He gestured to a checkerboard-like table off to his side.

". . . Does L suspect that we will broadcast the conversation with cellphones . . .?" Aizawa asked, as the team moved to comply with L's orders.

The guy _still _seemed a little wary of him . . . . although, I guess I should probably commend him for that. An independent mind is definitely what this team really needs, as opposed to the ordinary "yes man" who'll do whatever you say.

"Just do it." Mr. Yagami answered firmly. He probably believed that right now wasn't a good time to start questioning L's motives, especially with how far they'd all come in regards to the case.

"It's not like this is the first time he hasn't trusted us." Matsuda assented, sighing.

". . . I wonder if he ever will."

"You're wrong. I merely don't want our conversation to be interrupted by incoming calls." L said, getting onto his seat in his familiar crouch. "I can't stand it when peoples' cell phones are ringing when I'm trying to talk."

The team walked into the living room where L was, and got a little taken aback at the sight of L's unorthodox way of sitting, but quickly shook it off.

**Hmmm . . . bird or gargoyle, bird or freaking gargoyle . . .**

"Do not write anything you hear, just commit it to memory" L continued, once again raising an eyebrow up at them, almost as if he were expecting at least one of them to mess this part of the instructions up.

"Also, don't call me L. Call me Ryuuzaki. Safety first."

**I grinned. Yes, teacher!**

"OK, sit . . . make yourselves comfortable."

**Ruff! I hopped up and sat cross-legged in my seat . . . in midair.**

**. . . have I mentioned how much I love L's eyes?**

**.*.*.*.**

**Just in case you're all unaware, I'm invisible right now. Like I'd said before, there was no way I was going to miss the unraveling of the "Mystery of L" . . . aaaaaaand I'd also said that I wasn't going to steal the spotlight away from L . . . Ryuuzaki-kun. So, for now I'm just going to sit back, relax, and enjoy.**

**Oh, and I'm also currently floating over the table in the middle of the group.**

"L, . . . uh,_ Ryuuzaki_ . . . I just had an idea." Matsuda said awkwardly, leaning forward on the couch that he, Mogi, and Mr. Yagami were currently sitting on.

L took a sip of tea that he'd poured for himself, tilted his head to the right (his right) and frowned, then proceeded to start dropping at least ten sugar cubes into his drink.

"If Kira needs the names and faces of his victim to be able to kill them, then, maybe all we have to do is stop all the news channels from broadcasting information about criminals, right?"

**I frowned at that, my eyes narrowing as I bitterly stared off into space . . .**

_**No.**_

". . . if you do that, Kira will kill innocent people instead." L answered, looking at him.

"Innocent people?" Ukita said in surprise.

"Why would he do that?" asked Aizawa.

"I know exactly how he thinks . . ." L said, stirring his tea, "Because Kira is an immature sore loser." He took a sip. "Yes . . . since I am also an immature sore loser . . ."

**BIIIIIIIRRRRRRDDDDD! HIS FACE LOOKS LIKE A FREAKING BIIIIIRRRRRRDDDDD!**

**. . . ah . . . ahem! . . . sorry.**

**Anyway, this time his face said: "As much as I'd rather not admit it."**

Everybody in the investigation team stared at L, a little confused.

"Ryuuzaki . . . would you mind being a little more specific for us?" Soichiro asked.

"Early on in the investigation, when I publicly challenged Kira on national television, Kira killed the fake L without a second thought, breaking his pattern of only killing terrible criminals. Also, as soon as I said we knew he was in the Kanto region, in defiance, he made sure that his next victims came from within Japan, as if to say "What are you gonna do about it?""

**I scowled a little, and drew my knees up, holding them close to my chest so that I sat in a sort of a ball. I laid my head on my knees and turned by head to the side, angrily staring at a space of wall over the guys' heads.**

"Kira's met each of my challenges head on and he's never missed an opportunity to return the favor. He is very stubborn about not losing . . ." L put his cup back on the table. "Now, what do you think he'd do if you stopped all broadcasting of criminal information?"

"I guess . . ." Matsuda spoke, a little uneasily.

""If you choose to withhold the names of your _worst_ criminals, I'll kill petty criminals, or the innocent."" L answered for him.

""I'm holding the whole world hostage, so who's it gonna be?""

**Tch, yeah, that sure helped my angry face . . . Kira, I hate you.**

""I'm not the evil one here, but all those who oppose me by hiding criminals, you are truly evil. Their deaths are on _your hands!""_

**Aaaaaaaaannnd now I want to punch him in the face!**

L let out a sigh. "That's exactly how Kira thinks. Anyway, the most important thing now is to make sure the media doesn't show anything about us here. However, I think it's possible that we can use the media to draw him out."

L stared up at the ceiling, his eyes unfocused, and lifted his right index finger to his lips in thought.

"As luck would have it, many countries including the United States have agreed to provide any scientific and intelligence support they can for this case. So, what if we do this . . ."

"Announce something like "The United States government is furious about the murder of the F. B. I. agents. Kira has also enraged all the leaders of the world. The United Nations has sent 1500 investigators to Japan to assist in the capture of Kira.""

"For Kira, this will be way beyond what he faced with the F. B. I. He will consider anyone he sees on the street as a potential enemy. This will cause plenty of mental stress and discomfort. Psychologically, he'll start to feel cornered, and that will cause him to make some kind of drastic action."

". . . ." Soichiro and Matsuda

"Th-that's . . . awesome" Ukita said in awe.

"The seven-man team suddenly becomes 1,500 people. Yet, unlike the agents, most of those investigators don't exist, so Kira won't be able to kill them" Aizawa said, intrigued.

**And yet, somehow, I had a very, very bad feeling about this plan . . .**

"Ryuuzaki, I'll bring this up to my superiors immediately." Mr. Yagami.

". . . . . . . . ."

"I wonder what Kira'll do to counter this." Matsuda said.

"Even if he wants to retaliate . . ." Ukita started excitedly.

". . . Before we celebrate, let me share a few personal insights on the Kira Case." L said, cutting them all off.

**Awwwwwwww, cute kitty!**

**. . . . don't give me that look!**

"Firstly, Kira acts alone." He began, while biting his thumb "We can see this clearly from earlier reports. Also, he's had access to all of our classified information."

"Why do you think that? What are you basing this off of?" Aizawa

"Hold on, Aizawa. Let Ryuuzaki finish first. Save the questions for later."

"Ah . . . okay" Aizawa.

"We know he needs the face and name of his victims, and . . ." "He can control the time of death and the actions of the victim to some extent."

"Remember everything I have said so far and continue listening."

**I smiled.**

**Yeeeeeeeeessssss master!**

**. . . . . . . . . .**

**. . . . . . XD . . . . . XDDDDDDDDDD . . . . . .**

**CUUUUUUUUUUUTEEEEE! He'ssocutehe'ssocutehe'ssocutehe'ssocuuuuuuuuuuuuuteeee!**

**. . .**

**Uhhhh . . . okay, I'll shut up now . . .maybe.**

"December 14, twelve F. B. I. agents entered Japan."

"December 19 - Kira is clearly using prison inmates to test out his control over the victims' actions before their deaths. In other words, Kira noticed the F. B. I. agents at some time within these five days. He was at a disadvantage since he didn't know any of their names or faces."

"In order to eliminate the agents whose identities were unknown to him, Kira needed to test how well he is able to control the victims' actions." He wrote down the two dates on the table, writing "FBI enter Japan" below the 14th and "Experiments" below the 19th.

**I was already hypnotized by his every move. My eyes looked at the hand that L used to write on the table in front of him, watching it weave back and forth as he drew out his diagram.**

"December 27th - using the results of the experiments, Kira successfully gathered the names and pictures of the agents. Then he sent the files to all the agents before killing them."

"This is so that we won't find out which agent Kira acquired the information from. This also proves that Kira had contact with at least one of the agents."

**Uh, I forgot, am I supposed to be staring at L's eyes, or the little "picture" he's drawing?**

"The bodies of the twelve agents were found throughout the city. Between the 19th and the 27th . . . there were 23 other killings. Most of the victims were only suspected of a crime, but some had criminal records. These are starkly different from Kira's regular victims. They were all alleged criminals, ex-convicts or suspects in ongoing investigations, so legally speaking, they were innocent." He drew a large loop between the 27th and 19th dates, wrote down the number, 23, and circled it.

"That's true." Mr. Yagami said.

"Kira killed even those he wouldn't otherwise kill to eliminate the threat of the F. B. I. agents. What this indicates, is that he had to manipulate these lesser criminals in order to kill the agents."

**I leaned forward in my seat, far enough to where I could prop myself up with my arms, then I turned my head up and stared into L's wide dark eyes with my own.**

"He killed twenty-three people but most of them served as cover-ups, only a few of them had any purpose."

"Between his experiments and the killing of the agents, Kira waited eight days. This is probably to let the agents investigate more suspects, so he wouldn't stand out. In any case, Kira is among the people investigated during this time: the 14th, and the 19th of December . . . in fact, I have no doubt." L scribbled over the line between the Dec 14th and 19th dates that he wrote on the table.

**I grinned. GOTCHA!**

"Kira couldn't have known the name and faces of the agents before he could distribute the documents. One of them must've gotten the documents first."

"I know the order in which the twelve agents got the documents. These documents are supposed to be classified, but . . ."

"Amazing! With these we can start immediately!" Matsuda exclaimed

"First we find the common points between those 23 victims and the 12 agents . . ." Ukita began.

"We can look for clues in two teams," Aizawa said, "One for the F. B. I. agents and one for the 23 deaths."

". . . . ."

"So, does anyone have any questions?" L let his marker drop to the table with a soft clatter.

**I bit my lip, and had to try really hard not to let out an audible snort or burst out laughing.**

**Oh, L, your **_**face! **_**Hahahaha! If I had to define that look I think it would go along the lines of: "Didn't I just say that I didn't like being interrupted? *angry face* *pout*"**

". . . ." The rest of the team paused in their movements and looked towards him.

"Actually, Ryuuzaki, I do have one question for you" Soichiro said.

**I looked over at Mr. Yagami.**

"It pertains what you said to us earlier about how you hate to lose" he began, "Does the fact that you have shown us your face mean that you've lost? Is showing yourself in front of us a failure for you?

**I felt myself growing colder and colder, almost physically, and definitely emotionally, as each second passed.**

**I frowned.**

**'. . . . .'**

**'. . . . Is it?' I thought sadly.**

". . . By just being here, are you admitting defeat to Kira . . .?"

"Yes." L answered, "This meeting and the deaths of the twelve F. B. I. agents are all completely my fault. I _have _lost the battle . . ."

**. . . . Sad face . . . . Depression . . .**

"However, I will not lose the war . . . I will win in the end."

**I perked up and looked at him, surprised.**

"This is the first time I've risked my life to catch a criminal. I want to show Kira that we're all willing to risk our lives if that's what it takes . . . and . . ."

"Justice will prevail! No matter what." L smiled, so deceivingly sweet and innocent . . . and . . . almost cheeky.

**Meeeeeeeeeeooooooooooow! (I just had to say that! XD)**

**I grinned at him. Yup, no doubt about it: Kira won't win. Not while you're around . . . and especially not while I'm around.**

"Th-that's right!" Mogi said.

"Justice _will _prevail!" Matsuda said with bright shining eyes.

**Ah, Matsuda . . . maybe I'm just prejudiced about your character, but someday, you're gonna get hurt . . . and you're gonna get hurt **_**bad. **_**With or without Kira's help.**

**. . . does he seem naïve to you?**

"Let's get him!" Ukita exclaimed.

"Yeah! Let's go L . . . I mean, Ryuuzaki!" Aizawa said.

**WHOOOO! Way to join the bandwagon, Aizawa! OW!**

**Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Mr. Yagami smile warmly . . . almost in relief, I think.**

_'Well, I had my doubts about whether it was really him at first . . . but there's no mistaking it: this man, is _L._'_

"Before we go any further, I have to be absolutely sure that none of you are Kira. So I'll need to speak with each of you individually before you leave today." L said.

". . . . ."

"Hunh," Aizawa huffed, "What's the deal, he still doesn't trust us?" **And here's uptight Aizawa again . . . .**

"No, I think it's a fair request," Mr. Yagami said, "Ryuuzaki is right, Kira was getting information directly from the police. He may still be here."

"Yeah, you'd see L's face by being in the group!" Matsuda agreed.

"One more thing . . ." L began, "I want to introduce you all to someone . . . Sen, you can come out now."

**. . . Oh, come on, don't tell me you're actually surprised that L knew I was there the whole time! The man's a freaking **_**genius**_ **after all!**

I turned myself visible again and looked around at the happy people. (Actually, they were all sitting there, shocked and dumbstruck at the teenage girl who had come literally out of nowhere and was now floating in the space between them while sitting cross-legged.) I smiled at them all and waved.

"Hi guys! Nice to meet you! My name's Sen Boulibashi, what's yours?"

I grinned.


	9. The Proverbial Fly on the Wall Part II

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

**A/N - BOLD TEXT = SEN B. RANDOM!**

* * *

_"Morning in Paris, the city awakes, to the bells of Notre Dame!_

_The fisherman fishes, the bakerman bakes, to the bells of Notre Dame!_

_To the big bells as loud as the thunder!_

_To the little bells soft as a psalm . . ._

_And some say the soul of the city's_

_The toll of the bells . . ._

_The bells of Notre Dame!"_

_**.*.*.*.**_

_". . . a trap had been laid for the gyspies,_

_And they gazed up in fear and alarm_

_At a figure whose clutches_

_Were iron as much as the bells . . ._

_The bells of Notre Dame!"_

_**.*.*.*.**_

_"Judge Claude Frollo longed to purge the world of vice and sin_

_He saw corruption ev'rywhere_

_Except, within!"_

("Bells of Notre Dame" - The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) Soundtrack)

* * *

**Vision 25: Naomi Misora (Penber)**

For the next six hours I lolled around the hotel room, occassionally watching as L interrogated one of the five men in the Kira Investigation. There wasn't really much to do, other than stare at the ceiling or grab one of the books I'd brought with me and read on a couch . . .

L had introduced me as his bodyguard, said that I was a master illusionist and highly skilled in the art of weaponry, along with a number of hand-to-hand fighting techniques (which I was). He also said I was also an excellent spy, and one of the best in the world at breaking into stuff such as security vaults, homes, and, as everyone in the Kira Investigation saw, sneaking into secret board meetings.

. . . . Um, it might be my imagination, but I think he just said that I was exceptionally good at sticking my nose into things where I shouldn't . . .

Anyway, the whole singing gig that I had going on nowadays was my current cover for what I was actually doing. Not only that, but I was using my songs to try to influence the masses, so it was likely that, with any luck, if we needed more support for the Kira case, we'd get it.

On the matter regarding the "L" necklace that I always wore . . . there wasn't really much to say. If anyone asked, I was just an overzealous fan of justice. The percentage of anyone pressing the matter was relatively low.

As for my intelligence . . . well, it was adequate enough to the point where L decided it was okay to let me tag along.

. . . gee, thanks L, I feel flattered . . .

**I** told them that I was actually a superpowered teenager. All that other stuff about stealth, and breaking into buildings and board meetings (magic non-included), along with the whole weapons and hand-to-hand fighting bits just came along with the package. What can I tell you, when you spend years jumping from world to world, universe to universe, you tend to pick up a few things. Not only that, but my singing career wasn't really a cover . . . I_ did _do it because I wanted to help influence the masses . . . but I also did it because . . . singing was fun.

Of course, they didn't believe me at all, and went along with L's explanation . . . . also, I think they collectively decided that I was a bit eccentric . . . or perhaps, a bit insane, whatever came first . . . which would probably make sense for them, since I was hanging out with L. Plus the fact that, every forty minutes after I'd introduced myself, I would latch onto L's back and cuddle him like he was my own lifesize teddy bear . . . it pretty just drove that assumption home to them.

Well, whatever the case, I didn't bother to correct them. It didn't really matter to me if they believed me or not, and anyway, other than my little introductory magic act in the beginning, I didn't really feel like flaunting my abilities at the moment . . .

_**.*.*.*.**_

When dawn arrived, around 6:30 AM, I stood at the hotel window, watching as the sun's rays swept over the city before me, and embraced it, like some kind of warm, benevolent spirit. I watched the colors play in the skies, and reflect off of numerous windows, as well as shine on the concrete below. New dawn, new day . . . the world is a beautiful place, full of so many wonderful things . . . and it's just waiting for you to find it.

Unfortunately, I really didn't have the time to enjoy the view . . . I had a little damsel who needed saving, and I really couldn't remember at what time Kira would try to off her ass, so that left me with one other option: Stalk her.

I told L and the guys that I needed to go out for a bit, and run some errands, if they didn't mind of course. L, who most likely didn't believe a word I said and knew that I was up to something, just turned away and resumed talking to the man in front of him. The rest of the men just smiled at me good-naturedly and wished me a good day. After that, I turned, and flew out the window.

Before doing anything else, I closed my eyes and threw my psychic energies out so I could find Naomi's aura . . . I couldn't afford to miss her today, wherever she was going to be. When I found her, I flew over to her current destination and kept my distance for the next few hours.

Somewhere around midday, I followed Naomi over to a Japanese Police Station. I stayed outside, floating about six or ten feet in the air with my wings drawn out behind me, holding my hands behind my back.

I didn't wait long. Some minutes later, Kira . . . urggh, fine, _Light, _arrived at the station, holding a large bag in his hand. Yeah, I'm just leaving this set of nice clean clothes for my father because I'm_ such a good boy _. . . . blegh!

He went in.

I waited.

A few minutes later, maybe five - both he and Naomi walked out of the building.

Game II: Let it begin.

"I don't want anyone else to hear this . . ." I heard Light say from below, "I hope you don't mind."

"Don't worry about it." Naomi answered.

"I've gotta say, you must be pretty brave to get involved in the Kira case like this." Light complimented, _almost_ acting like he was a little impressed with her.

"Huh, not really" Naomi brushed it off.

"So, according to you, is Kira some . . . ." He stopped.

". . . . I've just realized . . . what's your name, anyway? My name is Light Yagami. "Light" is written with the characters for "Moon," and "Yagami" is written with the characters for . . . "Night" . . . and "God"" He finished awkwardly, and then tried to laugh it off: "Kinda weird huh?"

**What the? . . .**

**ARE YOU SERIOUS?**

**SO ****_THAT'S_ ****WHERE HE GETS IT FROM! OH, YOU SELF-OBSESSED **_**PRICK****!**_

"My name is Shouko Maki" Naomi responded "It's written with the characters for "Shining", "Ko" as in "Child", "Space", Moku "Wood" from Jiyumoku, and the "Te" from "Terasu", "Reflection.""

**Uhhhhhhh . . . . not sure I got all that . . . so I'm just gonna go with it . . .**

"Miss Maki . . . right?" Light asked, smiling.

". . . . I've been thinking about Kira's powers," The two of them turned and started walking down the street, "and I believe that they somehow enable him to control his victims before they die."

Naomi froze for a few seconds with shock, and then hurriedly walked in front of Light, saying "Ju-Just what I was thinking!"

"Oh? You were thinking the same thing?" Light asked.

"Kira's able to control the victims' actions before they die . . ." Naomi began "But I believe there's more to it. If my predictions are correct . . ."

"Kira can kill people with more than just heart attacks."

_'. . . . . she_ knows?' Light thought, surprised, _'Who _is_ this woman?'_

"Even if nobody notices it yet," Naomi said, "We might be able to catch Kira sooner with these clues."

"To be able to kill using something other than heart attacks . . . I've never thought about it" Light mused, "but if it's true, Kira would have used a method other than a heart attack to kill someone that he really wanted dead, and made sure it went undetected."

"Yeah . . ."

". . . I have a friend that may have found Kira." Naomi murmured softly.

"Found Kira!" Light exclaimed in surprise, "Hahaha! Sorry, but if you told those cops that you found Kira, none of them would believe you."

". . . Yeah." Naomi replied despondently, "That's why I wanted to speak directly with the investigators to explain everything. Otherwise, they'd just write me off."

"Why not just ask your friend that "contacted" Kira to speak for himself?" Light asked.

"My friend is dead now." Naomi answered, "he was one of the FBI that came to Japan . . . I'm his fiancée"

This time, it was Light who froze in his tracks.

_'An F. B. I. agent . . .'_ he thought,_ 'Who met Kira . . . could it be . . .?'_

"He said he got involved in a bus hijacking. If I'm on the right track, Kira was also on the bus."

_'. . . . Raye Penber . . . .' _Light was almost certifiably scared now.

**I flung my arm in Light's general direction, pointing my index finger at his figure as I laughed:**

**"MWAHAHAHAHA! YOU'RE SCREWED!"**

**. . . . I made sure neither of them could hear me though . . . which should have made my statement rather pointless . . . but it was just too much fun ****not ****to say! XD**

Naomi turned, and noticed that Light wasn't walking with her anymore.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

". . . . Nothing, I'm sorry to hear he passed away . . ." Light answered, trying to cover up his anxiety.

**For some reason, I held back from skipping back and forth behind those two, swinging my arms and legs high in the air as I sang "Somebody's in trouble! Somebody's in trouble! Somebody's in trouble! Ha! Ha! HahahaHA!" . . . . For some reason . . .**

". . . . That's why I would never forgive Kira." Naomi went on as she started walking again "All I want now is to catch him."

Light followed.

"So, why do you think your fiancé met Kira on the bus?" he asked.

"The hijacker was the same one that attempted to rob a bank two days ago, and he was hit by a car. Eight hours before the incident, another robber died from a stab wound in a convenience store that he was robbing . . ."

"These happened on the same day, and they both died of accidents. Doesn't that strike you as strange? I mean, really, what are the odds?"

"Eight days after the hijacking incident, my fiancée and eleven other F. B. I. agents died. And in the past eight days, twenty lesser criminals have died of heart attacks in this city. After he died, these incidents seem to have slowed down."

"My fiancée, the robber, the hijacker . . . they were all just part of Kira's plan to kill the F. B. I. agents. That's what I think, anyway."

**MISORA! WOMAN! I LOVE YOU! Hahahaha!**

"You could say that the convenience store incident was staged for the hijacking, and that the hijacking was orchestrated in order for Kira to get information from the F. B. I." she finished.

For awhile there was silence between the two as Light pondered this "new" information.

At last, he said "So, since both the robber and the hijacker didn't die of heart attacks, you predicted that Kira has many methods to kill somebody?"

"Yes"

"Isn't that a bit far-fetched?" Light asked skeptically.

"No, in fact I believe the robber was controlled by Kira before he died." Naomi answered.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I _think _that's a _bit _of a leap of faith."

"**Leap of FAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIITTTTH!" *Mock jumps off a high ledge***

**Screw you, Kira. You're just mad because . . . well, because YOU'RE SCREWED! HAHAHAHA!**

"There's no other way of looking at it." Naomi replied, "If Kira was controlling the hijacker, chances are he killed him too."

"I still don't see it." Light answered, probably a little "lost".

"I've been wondering about that bus-jacking ever since my fiancée first told me about it." Naomi said. "After he calmed down, I asked him for details . . . . He didn't mention any names, but he did tell me that he was forced in a position where he had to show his badge to someone on the bus."

"The operation was undertaken secretly, without the NPA's knowledge. He wasn't allowed to show his ID."

"I think . . . whoever saw his ID that day is responsible . . . for the deaths of all the agents."

**I slapped a hand over my mouth, my eyes opening real wide as an ginormous grin stretched across my face.**

"**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"**

". . . So, you're saying that in order to make him reveal his identity, Kira staged the hijacking?" Light inquired.

**Yup! I grinned.**

"And the hijacker died in an accident. This is why you think Kira has many methods?" He trailed off, thinking . . .

"With the information you have, and the will to avenge your fiancée, you came up with these predictions . . ." he began, "However, these clues contain a lot of bias, and no solid evidence."

**Why, you . . . . !**

"But . . . your theory is worth looking into. That's for sure." he conceded "Your testimony could help the investigation greatly. The current investigators are completely lost . . ."_ **Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh . . . . . . . .**_

"But with your help, there might be a chance."

**By the time he finished that sentence, my body had gone cold, and a grim look spread across my face. I glared at him.**

"Ye-yeah." Naomi replied, gratefully.

"If your conjectures are right, then we should catch Kira in no time," Light said, "because if you are right . . . The person who saw your fiancee's ID must be Kira."

**LIGHT! I WANT TO HURT YOU! ****SO BAD!**

_'That was close! __If this woman had told this to the police . . .'_ Light thought anxiously,_ 'But, it seems like a God other than a shinigami must be standing behind me.'_

**God, shmad! Kami, zami! Allah, Koala! YOU ARE GOING DOWN, YOU PIG-HEADED FREAK! GRRRRRRRRRRR!**

The two of them began walking in silence once more as I stewed in my anger, gritting my teeth and crossing my arms across my chest as I floated behind them.

**Urrrrrrrrrg! I wanna kick him, I wanna kick him, I wanna kick him!**

**. . . maybe I should burn his hair . . . or, wait, how about I take a really long knife . . . and shove it right through that conniving, two-faced skull of his!**

**Oooooh, that'd feel good! . . . I feel better already!**

_'No matter how she came up with the information, everything she deducted is true . . .'_ Light's mind was racing. _'If this information reaches the police, it won't take them very long to figure out Kira is actually _me . . .'

_'I have no choice . . . I must get rid of her!'_

"What is it?" Naomi asked, turning around to face him. Probably noticed the thick aura of tension that's been floating around Light . . . . and me.

"Oh, it's nothing . . ." Light came out of his thoughts. "I'm just thinking about what you said earlier. I think we should investigate what you said as soon as possible to solve this case."

"What, re-really?" Naomi asked hopefully.

"Yes"

**Aye! I groaned. Maybe it was Light's superb acting skills, but Naomi, for an F. B. I. agent is WAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too trusting for her own good . . . that's what it looks like to me, anyways . . .**

"Have you told anybody else what you've told me?" he asked.

"No, you're the first person I've told . . ." Naomi answered.

"Haha! How wonderful!" Ryuk laughed, "But how will you take care of this? Writing in the Death Note now will be too suspicious . . ."

'_Well, you have a gift for stating the obvious Ryuk.' _Light thought snidely, bringing out a sheet of paper from the Death Note from his jacket pocket, along with an ink pen.

"Well, aren't you bold!" Ryuk said, delighted.

"Let's get started: can you tell me when the hijacking occurred?" Light asked.

**Yeeeeeeaaaaaah, I was definitely having a hard time making myself hold still!**

"It was December 20th" Naomi replied "A bus from Asakao Okazen was heading to SpaceLand at 11:02."

"December . . . 20th" Light said under his breath, scribbling on the paper in his hand. "And . . . they were on their way to Space Land."

"Yes."

_Maki Shouko - Suicide._

_2004, January 1st, 1:15 PM_

_A place only she knows_

_Somewhere hidden and secluded_

_The body should be difficult to discover_

_All clues point to suicide._

_Within the next 48 hours._

**Ryuk laughed uncontrollably behind Light's back. It was actually quite infectious . . . I stood there, grinning while I listened to his awesome laughter.**

". . . I got it. If you don't mind, I'll pass this on to my father." Light said, putting the Notebook paper back into his pocket.

"Well, if it's all the same . . . the investigation team won't be gone all day . . . I want to tell them my report myself." Naomi said, "And after hearing what you have to say, I feel it's even more necessary to talk to them as soon as possible."

**"YES!" I jumped up into the air and punched the sky. "You go, survival instincts!"**

"I see, that makes sense" Light answered thoughtfully.

"Thank you for your concern."

_'. . . Just ten seconds until 1:15' _Light thought_, 'I have to admit, I'd really love to see how she dies . . . but I can't be caught following her around.'_

**_. . . twitch, twitch . . . punch, punch . . . no, don't punch, don't punch . . ._**

Light smirked to himself.

'_Go on! Die! Hurry to your death!'_

**"KIIIIIIIRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAA!"**

**_.*.*.*._**

**_. . . . . . . ._**

**_. . . . . . . ._**

**_. . . . . . . . XD_**

**Surprise, Kira! _Nothing happened!_**

"Kira will definitely be caught, don't you think?" Naomi asked.

**I grinned cheekily. Yes, yes I do.**

**Oh, and Light . . . you just got **_**SERVED****!**_

"Huh?" Light said, surprised ". . . ah, yeah . . ." He frowned, and checked his watch.

_'W-why? . . . It's already past 1:17 . . . What's going on?' _he wondered anxiously,_ 'It should have happened already!'_

**MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**

_'This doesn't make sense . . . I don't understand why she's not leaving!'_

**Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Naomi glancing back at Light over her shoulder. Oh god, woman, please tell me you're just now noticing there's something terribly wrong with this boy!**

_'I've had no problems making people kill themselves in the past, all I had to do was write the word "suicide." The criminals I tested it on all hung themselves exactly when I specified. My experiments indicate that in a situation like this, I should be able to control a person's actions . . . so, what's wrong?'_

_'Why isn't she doing what I wrote?'_

**Meanwhile, Ryuk was laughing his little ass off. I smiled smugly, and eventually started grinning again as I glided along the ground behind them, my hands clasped behind my back.**

Light looked back at Ryuk from the corner of his eye.

_'Ryuk . . . he's been laughing about something ever since I started writing on the Death Note . . . and that's not all, I remember thinking it was bizarre how he laughed when I asked for her name. In fact, he's reacted the same way every time her name comes up . . .'_

_'An alias!' _He realized,_ 'That has to be it! Ryuk knew all along: he could see her real name with his eyes!'_

_'I should have known . . . she's been overly cautious from the beginning. It makes a lot of sense though: she believes Raye died because he showed his ID to Kira, so, of course she'd be careful not to reveal her own identity . . .'_

_'Shit . . . this isn't good . . . it's going to be almost impossible to ask for her real name knowing she gave me an alias the first time. If I'm too persistent, she'll get suspicious . . .'_

_'What am I saying! It looks suspicious that I even knew she was using an alias!'_

The two of them stopped in a park somewhere a few blocks down from the station. Naomi turned around to face Light and said

"We should head back, maybe somebody's waiting."

"Oh," Light responded, coming out of his thoughts again, ". . . Right, maybe they're already back. Let's cross our fingers!"

"Yeah . . ."

**You know that whole Butterfly Effect thing? The one where if you kill a butterfly on one side of a world, a tornado pops up somewhere else? . . . and, applied to the timeline . . .well, pretty much same concept? . . .**

**. . . . well, so far, it hasn't been doing Naomi any favors . . . I mean, I would've figured that just my being here would've changed ****some things a bit . . .**

**. . . but, no, here I am, just doing commentary . . .**

_'Dammit! I'm running out of options here . . . I have to stop this before it's too late!'_

Suddenly, a terrible thought occurred to him:

_'Ugh, oh no! What if my father calls back now?' _he thought,_ 'I already promised her I'd let her talk to him if he did. __Even if we don't reach the station, it'll all end with just one phone call . . . Urrgg! What am I going to do? . . .!'_

His hand was already in his jacket pocket, clutching his cell in a vice grip.

**I should probably be feeling a little sorry for him, but so far, the only thing that had passed through my mind was:**

**"SKA-REEEEEWWWWWWEEEEEED!"**

_'. . . . I . . . what am I doing . . . my head is so messed up right now . . . This is crazy! All I have to do is turn my cell phone off!'_

He turned it off._ '. . . Alright, problem solved.'_

_'Now calm down. You know what needs to be done, just find out her real name . . . her purse, her pockets, she's gotta have a drivers' license or some kind of personal identification on her somewhere! She's a woman after all . . .'_

**HEY! That was a sexist comment, wasn't it? . . . then again, I'm probably just looking for more reasons to hate Light, so . . . ah, nevermind.**

_'. . . I suppose if I had to, I could use force . . . no . . . no, the last thing I wanna do is make a scene in public. I've gotta get her somewhere isolated . . . but where? And what explanation could I give her . . .?'_

**Eh, no . . . while I'm holding on to the idea that Naomi's just a bit too trusting, I know for a fact that she ain't stupid.**

_'Ugh, that would never work, she's too careful! I need a better approach . . .'_

**. . . . .**

_'I can do this . . . I'm going to convince her to give me her real name!'_

**I stared at him grimly as I continued to follow. If I could describe my emotions . . . I'd say, serious, grave, and a little cold would sum them all up pretty well.**

**_'Alright, go ahead, kill her.' _I thought off-handedly, my arms crossed in front of my chest.**

**_'. . . . it's not like you're gonna be able to do it, anyway.'_**

Ryuk chuckled. "Hey Light, you know, we can switch eyes at any time. All it takes is a few seconds. It's just like putting on contact lenses: completely painless."

'_Would I be willing to give up half my life, just to learn this woman's real name?' _Light wondered to himself, still trying to recover from his bout of nervousness and fear_ '. . . No, I wouldn't!'_

_'Losing half of my life for this woman? . . . It's not even worth considering, now quit wasting my time and shut the hell up, you shinigami!'_

**My head was tilted to the right, my hand resting on my cheek as I looked on.**

**. . . . Wow, I didn't know shinigami could read minds too . . .**

**It's official, Light's losing it.**

"Um . . ." Naomi started.

"Yes?" Light asked.

"Do you still need to go to the police station? I'll be fine on my own . . . in fact, I think I'd rather go by myself."

**Yes, Naomi – run now, run hard, and run fast, 'cause this guy's gonna screw you over!**

". . . Okay . . . yeah, no problem."

Before she turned to leave, she gave Light her thanks.

". . . With your encouragement, I feel much more confident about my conclusions."

"No problem" Light told her.

_'Considering that Ryuk mentioned the eye deal again . . . there's no doubt in my mind that she used an alias' _he thought._'At this rate, when she goes to the police with her theory about Kira being on that bus, and they look at the all the people Raye Penber was investigating, it won't take them long to zero in on me!'_

"Huhuhuhuh!" Ryuk laughed, "So, now what?"

**Well, I have an idea . . . . SIT BOY!**

**.*.*.**

_**.*.*.*.**_

**.*.*.**

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Bells of Notre Dame - Hunchback of Notre Dame Soundtrack**

**Days of the Phoenix - A. F. I.**

**Stop Playing God - Exilia**

**Court of Miracles - Hunchback of Notre Dame Soundtrack**

**Hello Zepp - Saw Soundtrack (also known as the "Saw" Theme Song)**

**Swan Lake - Introduction - Tchaikovsky**

* * *

A/N - Kudos to anybody who can figure out where I got the "LEAP OF FAAAAAAIIIIITTTH!" thing from.

A/N - To anyone who cares, I'm applying this set of songs to this and the previous chapter . . . I'd meant to make "Proverbial Fly" one chapter, but . . . yeah, it was a little longer than I'd expected it to be. Well, anyway, hope you enjoyed this update!


	10. Tadah!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

**Vision 26: Getting Back in the Game**

**So here we are, the Travelers Three (plus the Invisible Woman who has it in for the Two-Faced Liar over there . . .), making our way back to the Japanese police headquarters. Light's mind was working furiously as he tried to figure a way out of the dire situation he was in.**

'_If this woman makes it to the police station and someone from the Task Force has returned by then, I'm done for.' _He thought.

'_If I can't figure out her real name, I can't kill her . . . It's already less than 3 minutes 'til we reach the station . . . there's no time . . . if this goes on . . .'_

He stopped for a few moments, and then made his decision.

'_. . . alright.' _He walked over to Naomi.

"Oh? Whatcha doin'?" Ryuk asked.

"Um . . . excuse me" Light started.

"Yes?" Misora asked, turning around.

"There's something I should probably tell you . . ." Light said reluctantly.

"Okay."

"The thing is, it'll be impossible for you to contact any one from the Task Force directly."

"Huh?"she asked in confusion.

**Ugh, oh boy, I already knew what was coming . . . come on, woman, couldn't you at least **_**attempt **_**to defy fate? Then again, you can't fight what you can't see, so . . .**

**I sighed, stretched out my arms and legs and then floated on my back, with my hands clasped behind my head.**

Light, meanwhile, was still a bit on edge.

'_That's right' _he thought _' . . . Keep the conversation going: I just need to find something that she can latch onto and I got her! Once she's comfortable, I can get her real name . . . I can do this.'_

"I can't contact anyone? Why not?" Misora asked a little indignantly.

"Didn't you think it was a little odd that there was nobody at the headquarters?" Light asked.

"Well, yeah, I did, but . . ."

"Let me explain: the Kira case investigators have been organized so that its' members can't be identified and nobody on the outside knows who's in charge."

Naomi Misora wore a severe expression on her face as she took in this new information.

"If the members' names were ever made public, or the structure of the task force was ever revealed, there might be more victims like your husband."

That one took her aback somewhat. The pain from losing the love of her life must have been a little fresh, still.

"I understand." She answered morosely.

"That's why they said there wasn't anybody at the headquarters." Light went on, "You'll never be able to contact them directly. The police won't allow it."

Naomi stayed silent for a few moments, thinking . . .

"Hehe, Raito, you're such a smooth talker!" Ryuk laughed.

'_I'm trying to make her reveal her name, it's a crucial moment right now, so would you just shut it for a second, Ryuk!' _Light thought angrily.

**Why should he? I don't have a problem with it, do you? I don't! Nope!**

**. . . I wonder how Light manages to keep a straight face under all the stress, hmmm . . . ah, screw detective work, the guy should have picked up a career in acting! At least then, he'd do the world a whole lot better good.**

"If this is supposed to be a secret, then how do you know so much?" Naomi asked at last, staring him down with grim eyes.

"Whoops, guess I spoke too soon!"

Light didn't say anything for a few moments, then began ". . . that's because . . ."

He sighed.

"I guess I'll just have to tell you . . ." he said, "giving in".

Light looked her right in the eye and said

"It's because I'm a member of the investigation team."

"Huh?" Ryuk asked in confusion.

**Yeah, you heard him.**

Both Ryuk and Naomi were completely floored by this.

"What? You're a member?"Naomi asked in shock.

"Yes" Light answered, "L is in charge right now and he's leading our investigation."

"Yes, no surprise there." Naomi said.

"L has been troubled by the lack of progress lately, mostly because many investigators had quit out of fear of Kira." Light continued.

"Even though I'm still in high school, I've solved many difficult cases before, so, L decided to have me on board."

**DON'T INSULT ME!**

**I glared angrily at the back of Light's head.**

"So, L trusts you then." Naomi mused, ". . . and, talking to you would be like talking to the investigatio-, no, L . . ."

**Uuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhh **_**NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!**_

"Yes. I can go to the Task Force headquarters whenever it suits me, and I'm allowed to investigate freely as I see fit. You see, these days the Task Force is made up of a chosen few, an elite group of people handpicked for the job by L.

**OH, BITE ME, WILL YOU! Egotistic, psychopathic, pompous, homosexual-embarrassment-to-the-world freak job nut ASSHOLE! *grumbles***

"All are highly skilled, well respected, and above all, trustworthy."

**I could kill you right now . . . I really could.**

**. . . . Why am I not killing you again? Ugh.**

'_That's amazing' _Naomi thought wonderingly, a little in awe of him, _' . . . this should enough then . . . I've told "L" everything I know . . . yet . . .'_

And yet . . . something didn't seem right.

Suspicious, Naomi looked away from him, saying "Thanks for explaining, but just to be safe, I'd like to try to visit the task force headquarters again."

_**YES! **_**PRAISE TO THE NONBELIEVERS!**

**Naomi, I was totally wrong about you, I apologize, you rock!**

"Huh?" Light said, confused.

"Goodbye." She turned away.

'Not yet . . .' Light seethed, 'I don't know your name yet!'

"Uh, please! Wait a second!" He called, going after her.

**Just keep walking, just keep walking . . .**

"It's like I just told you: _they won't let you talk with anyone_!"

**Keep walking, keep walking . . . oh hell with it, RUN WOMAN! DON'T MAKE ME HAVE TO SAVE YOU!**

"I know," Misora answered, unwavering. "But I was hoping I could speak to L directly."

"Miss Maki! Please, wait a second!" Light insisted.

'**Sounding a little desperate there, Light!' I thought, raising an eyebrow.**

**At this point I had rolled over onto my front, and was staring after them with my chin resting on my hands as I floated after them.**

"It's literally impossible to meet L! This is pointless!" Light walked around Naomi so that she faced him.

**Go to hell.**

**You may as well, Light, after all, it is your birthright . . .**

"You may be right . . .' Naomi acquiesced, "but I think there's a chance he'll meet with me."

**I grinned.**

'**So do I!'**

"You see, I worked under L to solve a case two years ago in the states. Although the only contact I've had with him was following orders through a computer . . . I think he might remember who I am. I also believe that there is no case that L cannot solve."

**Yup!**

Light nearly did a double-take as he said "Seriously? You worked under L?"

**HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!**

**(Finger-pointers, POINT!)**

"Yes." She answered, " I didn't tell you this earlier, but . . . I used to be an F. B. I. agent until 3 months ago"

Light blinked in surprise.

**Inyourface!Inyourface!Inyourface!Inyourface!Inyourface!INyourFACE!**

'_. . . . this . . . I'll use this . . .' _he thought malevolently.

**Inyourface!Inyourface!Inyourface! . . .wait, WHAT?**

"No wonder, the way you handle Kira's case is very professional." He complimented, smiling warmly at her. "You're very cautious, and you seem to have a gift for getting to the heart of the matter." If I could, I'd like to learn from you, Miss Maki."

**Kick.**

"Huhuhuhuhuhuh! One lie after another, you make it look easy!" Ryuk grinned . . . that is, if he could actually grin at all with that shark-toothed, bear trap of a mouth of his.

**I rolled my eyes.**

"From the beginning I knew I had to do things outside of the regular channels" Naomi said, "Because, from my perspective, both the police and the members of the Task Force were suspects. But . . ."

"I'm certain that I can trust L." She finished, wearing the same expression Mr. Yagami had when he finally decided that L was really _L. _That strange look of happiness, relief, and . . . peace.

**What she'd said surprised me for a bit, but afterwards, I started grinning. 'Cause, really, who would disagree with that?**

'**Yes.' I thought.**

"Maybe it's unrealistic," **Not really.** "But I think that if I go to headquarters and give them my name, there's a chance they'll let me speak with him directly."

"I see . . . ." Light replied, "But, why would you tell me all the things that you're going to tell _him?"_

At first, Naomi didn't answer, but then . . .

"I suppose I was upset that they wouldn't allow me to see anyone from the Task Force" she reasoned, ". . . and then you came along, claiming to be the son of the lead detective and . . . no, that's not it . . . I . . ." She broke off, shaking her head.

"I'll be honest with you" She said, "It's because . . ."

"You remind me of L."

**WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!**

"There's something about you that's . . . just like him."

**ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS? DON'T YOU DARE INSULT ME, WOMAN!**

**Grrrrrrrrrrrrg . . . uuuuuuugggggghhhhh . . . . grrrrrrrrrrr . . . . .**

**Finally, I took in a deep breath and let it out, and managed to calm myself a bit.**

**Okay, so maybe I've noticed a few similarities between L and Light myself, but that doesn't mean I like anybody **_**else **_**comparing the two. Everytime I hear something like that . . . it's almost like they're praising Light, putting him on the same level as L . . . when in actuality he's NOT!**

That aside, even Light was a little taken aback from Naomi's statement, but quickly collected himself.

After a few moments, he spoke.

"Let's work on this case together."

**LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGGGGHHHHHHT! ARE YOU DOING WHAT I THINK YOU'RE DOING?**

"What?" Naomi asked.

**OOOOOOHHHH! If that guy so much as even **_**thinks**_** of telling the woman that he's L . . . I'm gonna do bad things to him. VERY! BAD! THINGS!**

**Screw the "I-gotta-stay-outta-this" Rule, THAT IS FREAKING CROSSING THE LINE!**

**And you know what, after I'm done, I'm gonna call up a few friends of mine and let THEM have their way with HIM!**

**Tell me, are you familiar with Freddy Krueger? Well, he's a VERY good friend of mine (we're best friends actually . . . best friends who like to try to kill each other . . . one of whom likes to stick the other in a cage until such time arrives when I'm completely bored to living death and wanna shoot/slash/maim something . . . ooooohhhh, I'm tempted!) . . . . I think Light would like him! Don't you? Oooooh! And maybe I could invite John over too! I bet they'll have LOADS of fun together!**

**(I can't wait to watch! XD)**

"Become a member of our team." Light explained.

"This way, you can speak directly with L. No, you can catch Kira yourself." He extended a hand towards her in offering.

**Woah, wait, what?**

"My dad recommended me for the team because I wanted to help in the investigation. Since the team needed more people, and I happened to be qualified . . . we need someone like you."

**. . . . So, he's not gonna tell her he's L . . . Well that just kills it for me!**

"You're not just an investigator, you've worked in the F. B. I. You are more than qualified for this team. In fact, it wouldn't be that hard for you to join. All you'd need is some valid and secure identification, a recommendation from a member already on the team, and, of course, L's approval." Light's voice grew more and more excited with every word.

"I can't help but think that Fate wants you to be on the team!" Light finished enthusiastically, "I'd like to be the one to recommend you!"

**You know what? I'm still going to haunt his dreams tonight! You wanna know why, Light? BECAUSE **_**I DON'T LIKE YOU**_**!**

"Hoho, amazing, Light" Ryuk sniggered, "Human females can't resist the allure of "Fate""

**I'm not gonna respond to that.**

**I'm a little insulted, yes, but I'm not gonna respond to that.**

**Ugh, anyway . . . "pause for effect!" . . . .**

". . ."

"Oh, I'm sorry about that," Light said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head in "embarrassment"

"I guess I got a little bit too excited."

"I-it's okay!" Naomi said a little breathlessly.

"I mean, even if you acted as a consultant on this investigation, which would be a great help, it may be difficult for you, I'm sure you have personal obligations to attend to." Light mused, raising a hand to his mouth. "You live in the United States, right?"

"That's true," Naomi said, dejectedly "We were planning to get married this spring and move to America afterwards . . . but now he's gone, and now, I'm not sure what to do anymore."

'_Good, just a bit further . . .' _Light thought deviously.

**I narrowed my eyes at him.**

"But you're young and beautiful, and you've got your whole life ahead of you!" He said, trying to 'cheer her up', as if he were actually worried for her best interests.

"Why put it all in danger for this?"

"No!" Naomi protested, "Now that Raye's gone, I've got nothing to lose anymore!"

**Except your life . . . Misora, don't ruin my recently earned respect for you.**

"I'd give anything to catch Kira!"

**. . . . . . . . do I have to say it?**

"It's all I wanna do . . . I have no regrets." **You will in a minute . . .**

"I want to join the team . . . please, let me . . ."

Hook, line, and sinker. Miss Naomi Misora, you, madam, have been defeated.

All this was to much for Ryuk. He broke down and cracked up so hard, I thought he was going to hurt himself.

**At that moment, I felt my disposition become as cold as ice, while, at the same time, just simmering beneath the surface, I boiled in rage.**

"Yes . . . of course . . ." Light said gently, "I just need to see your ID first before we proceed."

**Oh no.**

"Oh . . . Uh . . . that . . ." Naomi said uncomfortably.

"Hmmm . . .?"

"The name I gave you earlier . . . it wasn't my real name." She said guiltily, "I'm so sorry."

"That's fine, don't worry about it." Light answered warmly, "To be honest, I'm impressed by how incredibly thorough you've been . . . you've stayed one step ahead of me. You're even more amazing than I first suspected!"

"So . . . Would my Japanese ID work?"

"Sure"

_**'Naomi . . . . .'**_ **I sighed to myself,** _**' . . . I'll wait up for you.'**_

**I moved to fly away from the scene, but then stopped, thinking what if she doesn't actually walk away from Light? What if she ends up going the other way?**

**Agh, dammit, now I'm going to have to stick around . . . and ignore that exceedingly overwhelming urge to kick Light . . . we're going to save the hurting for later, Sen, remember? . . .**

**Oh, this was going to be** _**painful!**_

"When did you start working for the F. B. I.?" Light asked casually as he pretended to write her information down.

"From September of 2001 until October of 2003" she answered.

After a few moments, she said "Um . . . If you don't mind my asking . . . why are you always checking your watch?"

"Oh, this?" Light said nonchalantly, "That's because . . ."

Tick . . . tick . . .

"I'm Kira."

A look of some deep-seated horror stole over Naomi's face as she realized the implications of what she had just done. But it was too late for her to take it back.

The clock struck 1:25 PM, and then all emotion seemed to fall away from her, like _someone _had ripped her spirit straight from her heart.

She turned, and started to walk away.

"What's wrong?" Light asked 'curiously'.

"I have something I must do." Naomi answered, sounding almost like she was in some sort of despair.

Light looked like he was fighting really hard to keep the smirk off his face.

He flipped open his cell.

"Oh, seems like my dad finally called back . . . want to talk to him?"

"No, thank you" Naomi said, a little detached, "There is nothing to talk about."

"Then farewell . . . Naomi Misora."

**. . . .**

**I glared darkly at Light. This guy was such a . . .**

**. . . You know what, instead of having a hissy fit to myself, I'm . . . just . . . gonna . . .**

**Scare the living shit out of him.**

**I landed on the ground and walked up to him. I laid a hand on his right shoulder, and whispered in his ear:**

_**"One . . . two . . . Imma comin' for you . . ."**_

_**"Three . . . four . . . Better lock your door . . ."**_

_**"Five . . . six . . . grab your crucifix . . ."**_** ********

_**"Seven . . . eight . . . Gonna stay up late . . ."**_

_**"Nine . . . ten . . . Never sleep again."**_

Light froze stock still as he listened to the disembodied voice whispering in his ear, now echoing inside his head. He looked around quickly, trying to find the source, but he couldn't find anything. The only ones on the street at the moment were him and Ryuk . . .

Ryuk looked questioningly at Light and looked around too, but . . . nothing.

"Uh . . . Light?" he asked, "You ok?"

Light was taking in some deep, heaving breaths in an attempt to calm himself down. First all the stress from the potential possibility of his identity being revealed to the policemen . . . and now he was _hearing things? _No! He was stronger than that, he was way stronger than that, that's why he took it upon himself to rid the world of evildoers in the first place!

"Light? . . . Liiiiiiiiiggggght! . . . Light?" Ryuk asked, floating around him in circles and peering in at his face.

Not only that, why in the world would he taunt himself with some overdone mockery of a nursery rhyme from some stupid horror movie? No, if he really wanted to torture himself, he could definitely think of a lot better ways of doing it . . . the mind is a sort of prison after all. Also, the voice that sounded in his head . . . it didn't sound like him or anyone else he had ever met . . . yet it seemed oddly familiar . . . wait, _had_ he heard it somewhere before?

. . . . Well, one thing was certain, he had another adversary on his hands . . . one who apparently had the ability to break into his mind . . . there was no other possibility . . . and, with a piece of the Death Note sitting in his pocket, knocking anything related to the supernatural out of the equation was plain stupidity . . . and the worse thing was . . . What with this . . . _voice_ coming out of nowhere, he had absolutely no idea what she was capable of . . . hang on, "she" . . . DAMN IT! Why couldn't he remember where the voice came from!

Come to think of it, how was he so sure that this voice was a new adversary? How was he sure that he wasn't just imagining things?

Light narrowed his eyes, clenched his teeth and his fists in frustration and anger.

"Liiiiiiigggght! Yoohoo! Liiiiiggght!" Ryuk tried again, waving his hands in front of Light's face.

"RYUK JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP AND LEAVE ME ALONE WILL YOU! WE HAVE A BIG PROBLEM!"

* * *

**Vision 27: Saving the Princess**

I probably should have just left the damn thing well enough alone and just went about my "mission", but . . . looking at what Light's done . . . There was no way I could just take that sitting down.

In a way, I was kind of being nice in my not-so-misplaced aggression, because repeating Freddy's calling card almost verbatim was sort of giving me away for what I was going to do tonight. However . . . . well, I have no excuse. I just knew that there was no way I could walk away from there without doing something bad to him.

I moved away from him, and flew after Naomi. If I was right, she probably wouldn't commit suicide anywhere public, so she probably wouldn't be going to any back alleys or whatever . . . but if she did I could always give her some mental prodding to go somewhere else.

I brought out my cell phone and dialed Raye's number.

"Hey boy, what's up?" I asked him when he answered the phone, "Yeah, she and I just left, where are you right now? . . . . okay, so . . ." I looked around for a good spot "Oh, look! There's a coffee shop up ahead! How lucky! You know the one I'm talking about? . . . Good. Just grab yourself a cuppa and we'll meet you there in a few minutes."

I hung up and flew ahead of Naomi, making sure to instill the idea in her head to make a trip past the coffee shop and . . .

**.*.*.*.**

I leaned back comfortably in my seat, balancing my chair on its hind legs as I propped up my legs on the table in front of me. I held a large cup of some warm, sweet black tea in my hand, which I took frequent sips of as I searched the street in front of me (I was sitting outside the building) for Naomi. Finally, I spotted her walking around the corner.

When I saw the look on her face . . . . it scared me. I never got a really good look of her face when Light was out, acting like he was the Grim Reaper or something (come on, he already thinks he's a "God"! A "Grim Reaper" can't be too far off from where he's at right now!), and I shouldn't have had to, I mean, I'd already read the manga and seen the anime, but . . . it was horrifying, to say the least . . .

. . . She looked dead.

_'Crap, better work the magic fast!' _I thought, shaking off the shock. I took another drink out of my tea as I watched her moving slugglishly up the road. Finally, when she stood parallel with me on the street I called out cheerfully, "Hi there, miss!" I waved a hand in greeting.

Naomi turned her face towards me, her expression blank. You know, she actually looked a little tired at the moment . . .

Before I could muse on this any further, Naomi turned her head and started walking.

_'DAMN IT, WOMAN!' _I thought, throwing my legs off of my table and jumping out of my chair. I jogged after her and grabbed her arm. She made a move to brashly throw me off, but I held her fast, gripping both of her arms in my hands as I said playfully into her ear "Aw, come now Miss, that's not _nice! _We must be polite to strangers we meet on the street, don't chu know?"

Naomi just stared at me listlessly with those lifeless eyes of hers.

I kept my little impish smile plastered on my face as I dragged her over to the coffee shop. "_Come on, _dah-lin'! You must be freezing to death out here! Let me buy you a nice hot cup of coffee!"

I'm not taking "no" for an answer, lady . . . and, btw, **SCREW YOU, FATE! **I spit on your graves!

I forced her down into a seat across from mine (I even worked some magic on her that pretty much, more or less, superglued her to her chair), and then walked over to my seat, which, miraculously, hadn't fallen to the ground in my haste. I propped my arms on the table, splaying my palms out on the wood as I smiled warmly at her and said "Now, let's see . . . about that coffee . . ."

I reached out my hand and then waved it across the space in front of her, making a steaming mug of sweet, black coffee appear out of nowhere. Naomi looked down at her drink, although it kind of looked more like she was looking _through_ it (good lord, where was her brain? Did the Death Note come with a brain-eating bonus?), and then she slowly brought her eyes back up to me. No surprise, no emotion at all, not even distrust . . . just a profound feeling of emptiness inside the soul.

I kept the cryptic smile on my face as I assured her "It's not poison, honey, I promise." However, Naomi continued to remain as she was, as is . . . Was it the Death Note magic holding her, or was she really that stubborn? Well, could be the stubbornness, looking at the little "battle of wills" between her and Light. I sighed, and then said, "Look sweetie, I already know that you got someplace to go, it's written all over your face. But . . . well, you look like you could use some cheering up . . . let me guess, bad fall-in with a guy?"

FINALLY! A REACTION! Naomi winced a little and shrunk back into her seat, her gaze trained down. I placed a finger under her chin and gently lifted her face upwards to confront mine.

_Even more reaction_! Poor thing looked so sad . . .

"Tell you what, if you take my offer" I motioned to the cup, "I will personally drive you to wherever it is you gotta go, even if it's to the middle of nowhere, okay?"

No response . . . . well, at least she actually _looked_ like she was considering it (it's a little hard to tell with a stone face) . . . which was kind of what I was hoping for. Light's Death Note only said that she had to start going somewhere to off herself at 1:25 PM, he never said anything about how long the death itself would actually take . . . Loop-holes, people! They can be your best friend!

I raised my pinky finger in front of her face.

"Scouts honor, and pinky swear, sweetie." I tilted my head to the side, still smiling. Come on, Naomi, please! Don't make me beg!

Instead of taking the pinky, Naomi looked back down at her drink, and slowly brought her hand up to the mug. Holding onto the coffee firmly in her grasp, she lethargically brought the drink up to her lips and took a small sip.

SUCCESS! I grinned, and then sat myself down in my chair. I crossed my arms on the table, and then asked "So, Naomi Misora, how do you feel?"

Naomi blinked several times before her eyes finally came into focus. Startled, she looked around quickly before placing her mug back on the table, and then shakily asked "Wh-what just happened? Who are you? Where am I . . .?" Her eyes flashed in realization as she remembered, "Th-that guy, Light Yagami! He's Kira! And he just . . . Oh God!"

Uh, can I take a message?

Anxiously, she stood up. "I'm sorry, but I have to go!"

"Not right now, you're not!" I said in a hard tone, grabbing her wrist. I looked at her straight in the eyes as I told her "Miss Naomi Misora, you were almost killed today by Kira. On that very same day, you were forcibly wrenched from the edge of the abyss by me, which, I believe, is enough to cause a major whiplash for anyone, especially for someone like you. I understand that you're a little scared, I understand that you're confused, and right now, I'm betting that you're not sure whether or not you should trust me, especially considering what's happened . . . ." Body language 101. Honestly, I think anybody would be able to figure this out with a little empathy and reading the emotions currently playing out across her face . . . plus, I was kind of expecting that.

I closed my eyes and sighed, taking in a deep breath so I could calm down and look at her with more sympathetic eyes.

"However, I can honestly say that you can, in fact trust me. I won't hurt you, and I won't use you for my own evil ends. Even more important than that, in your state of mind, you are in no condition to go racing after anybody just yet, understand?"

Naomi stood petrified in, yes, distrust, shock, and fear, but eventually she calmed down. I don't know what it was, but something in her must have told her that I definitely wasn't lying . . . . I just hope that it wasn't the same voice that told her that she could trust Light. Well anyway, by this point she was trying to analyze her current situation carefully, trying to make sure she wouldn't step into anymore traps . . . at least that's my guess.

After Naomi composed herself and sat back in her chair, I said "Alright Miss, now, before we do anything I want to explain a little bit of what just happened around . . . ohhhh . . ." I checked my watch "Five, maybe eight, minutes ago." At that moment a tall young man with blonde shaggy, shoulder length hair and light-green eyes, and peach-toned skin walked over to our table. He had a strong physique, and a thin-lipped smile that seemed guarded _for some reason, _and he wore a business suit beneath a beige colored coat.

I looked up at him and grinned. "And, I'm gonna start with this guy!" I waved a hand towards him as he sat down. "This, my friend, is Stephen F. Elumine', a business colleague of mine that I met a few weeks back. Ain't he just the _cutest?"_

Stephen clasped his hands together on the table, lacing his fingers together as he let himself smile fully at Naomi, who, unfortunately, was still a little bit uneasy. Oh boy, please don't let this end up being harder than I thought it was going to be!

"Hi Naomi," Raye spoke tenderly, a little sheepishly.

If I'd thought that Naomi was going to fall out of her chair in shock, I was dead wrong. Damn it, no comedy relief for me.

She was, however, dumbstruck at hearing the voice of her beloved coming from the throat of some dude that she'd never seen before.

"Raye?"

Naomi moved to get out of her chair again. "No, it can't be . . . you're dead! This has to be a trick, somehow!" she protested.

"Weeeeeeeeelllll, it isn't." I said casually, holding my hand against my cheek. If she was going to go all predictable on my sorry ass, I was going to get seriously bored . . . and I can do some pretty crazy things when I'm bored!

"Your husband, Miss, is alive and well," I continued, "And until the Kira Case is over, this is gonna be his new body. I've already got a new voice arranged for him to use later. Hope you like being Russian-Irish, Raye!" I kicked up my legs back on the table, once more balancing my chair on its two hind legs as I picked up my cup of hot tea and taking a long draft out of it.

Raye gave me an odd look, raising an eyebrow at me right before he shook his head. "Heh, um, sorry about that Naomi, you're going to have to excuse her . . . she can be a little bit out there sometimes . . . not to mention a little bullheaded and unsympathetic." He said, raking a hand through his hair in near exasperation.

"Unsympa- . . . I AM PLENTY SYMPATHETIC THANK YOU VERY MUCH!" I yelled in outrage, glaring at him, "And "bull-headed"? Well, excuse me for being a teenager!"

Raye looked at me and chuckled a little. "A teenager, Sen? I'm sorry, but how old did you say you were again?"

"I TOLD YOU, I LOST COUNT! And that point is completely moot, because, LIKE I TOLD YOU, I have the mindset of an 18-year-old girl! UGH!" I groaned, rolling my eyes upwards towards the gloomy sky.

Naomi looked at the two of us, a hand on the back of her chair. She still looked ready to bolt, but at the same time, she was trying to figure out just what the hell was going on. This had to have been a complete turnaround from what she experienced ten minutes ago . . . and she probably still couldn't find a good reason to believe that this blond-haired man and this hyper and _slightly_ tempermental black haired girl. One the one hand, not a lot of people would look at her with such kindness, love, and familiarity, even if they were lying. That should probably say a lot, I believe, especially considering her little episode earlier with Light. Then again . . . as she had just witnessed . . . some people can be really excellent liars.

Raye, uh, sorry, _Stephen, _looked up at Naomi with earnest eyes. "Naomi . . . look, it's okay! You can trust her, she's telling the truth! . . . I'm alive, Naomi . . . this is really me under all this . . ." He motioned to his face.

Naomi didn't say anything . . . so, she really _was_ that stubborn before the mind-warp! Then again, if I were actually working for Kira, it would actually be pretty smart of Naomi to be so cautious. Because . . . what was the moral of the story between Light and Naomi, kids? BE CAREFUL OF WHO YOU GO SPILLING OUT YOUR TROUBLES TO! SOME PEOPLE CAN, AND WILL, JUST DECIDE TO TAKE FULL ADVANTAGE OF YOU, ESPECIALLY IF THEY'RE THE KING OF ALL JACKASSES! . . . . . then again, I'm a _little _biased, so what do I know?

Stephen frowned, and, locking his pale eyes with Naomi's dark, severely. "Naomi . . . I can prove to you I'm not lying. About a week ago, when I came back from the bus-jacking, you were the first one to suggest that Kira may have been behind the whole thing. You were right, but I didn't believe you . . . more to the point, I was afraid to believe you because I was afraid that if I gave you even the smallest bit of leeway, you'd try to find some way to get yourself involved in the Kira Case . . . and, eventually, I feared . . . you'd end up being killed by Kira himself." He paused.

"I told you to forget about the whole thing and just focus on our upcoming marriage, to think of the happy times we were going to have together in the future, just you, me, and a few kids, maybe. We could never really agree on how many children we wanted to have . . . I wanted three or four, but you only wanted one . . . and you would only have a second baby if it was a twin to the first . . ."

I switched my gaze between the two of them. My elbows were on the table, and my chin was resting on my hands, which were currently laced together. I watched the surprise and amazement and shock pass over Naomi's face . . . yeah, we were making a believer out of her yet. Just needed one more thing . . .

"Also . . ." Raye went on, "I asked you to give me a few tips on how to please your dad." He laughed. "I told you that he scared me more than Kira ever could . . . and the funny thing is . . . even though I was nearly killed by Kira himself . . . your dad still scares me!"

Bingo.

Naomi's expression swelled with emotion, and she put a hand over her mouth in an attempt to keep herself from crying. When she removed it, she spoke brokenly "R-Raye!"

The two hugged each other tightly over the coffee table. Raye rubbed soothing circles into Naomi's back as she raggedly sobbed into his coat, her breath catching every few moments. Which was really sweet and all . . . and a little awkward for me . . . but . . .

"Hey! HEY! Break it up you two!" I cut in, pushing them away from each other, "As much as I'd love to witness your joyful and tearful reunion with each other, we got bigger problems on our hands!" I looked at the two of them sternly. "For example . . . _you, _Naomi" I pointed at her, "Still look like Naomi Misora! If we don't get you out of here soon my plan will most likely get itself screwed majorly! Also, if people figure out that Raye's not really dead, we'll probably be even more screwed! I don't know, but I'm not gonna take my chances! And you know what? The only reason people aren't looking over here and listening in on our conversation is because I gotta freaking magic bubble surrounding this thing!" I kicked a table leg.

Naomi stared at me, rebuked and a little surprised. Raye on the other hand, was raising an eyebrow at me.

"Sen, how much caffeine have you had?"

"You mean tea? One . . . well, three-quarters of a cup." I said looking down. I grabbed my tea and gulped the rest down.

"Okay, one. Also, I had like twenty cans of Diet Coke earlier, why?"

"Your right shoulder's twitching."

I looked. Damn it, it was . . . not a whole lot, it was really only a small shake . . . but the fact that it was visible embarrassed me somewhat.

"Don't you think you're overreacting a little, Sen?" Raye smiled at me, "Didn't you say that your magic was failproof?"

"Technically, _you_ think my magic is failproof."

"So you're creating your own flaws."

"Shut it, _Penber!" _I glared at him. Stupid F. B. I. agent . . . did I ever think he was useless? . . . even once? Even for a stupid reason? . . . If I did, WHAT WAS I THINKING?

"Look, can we just go? Naomi, I'll lead you to the apartment "Stephen's" staying at. When we get there you can decide what you want to look and sound like and what your new name will be. "Stephen", you explain everything to her on the way."

Naomi, who had been looking back and forth between the two of us in confusion, asked "What? But wait, didn't you say that you were going to tell me what's happened?"

"Well, you already know the most important part: Light Yagami is Kira. Aaaaaaand . . ." I moved out of my chair and turned on my heel. "I kind of don't feel like repeating myself today."

I marched off.

"Either way, it doesn't matter. Neither of you are gonna be able to involve yourselves in the investigation in any way, shape, or form. Basically, your jobs just became mine. I'm gonna be the one helping L to catch Kira. Not you. Let's go!"

"_WHAT?"_

* * *

_"What's the matter with these scissors?"_

_"THE THREAD WON'T CUT!"_

_- _The Three Fates _(_**Hercules, **_**1997**__)_

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**I Put a Spell on You – Hocus Pocus Soundtrack**

**Oki's Theme – Okami Soundtrack**

**In the Shadows – The Rasmus**

**Awake - Godsmack**

**Death Note - Death Note Soundtrack**

*** - And then throw it away, because what is a crucifix in this world other than two pieces of wood that are latched onto each other with pieces of rope and a few iron nails? Not to mention the fact that, long ago, this very thing that many Christians worshipped was actually used as a torture/killing device. Choose your religion wisely, people! I'm not saying that the crucifix itself has no power to speak of whatsoever, I mean, in some of the worlds I've been to, they possessed some pretty kick-ass holy/spiritual powers.


	11. This is My Nightmare

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

**A/N - List of people I would like to put in a cage:**

**1) Light Yagami**

**2) Jigsaw**

**3) Freddy Krueger**

**4) The Joker**

**5) A Horde of Zombies**

**6) Jason Voorhees**

**7) Samara**

**8) Lex Luthor (probably)**

* * *

_"You never wanted to admit it . . . There is a darker side to humanity."_

_"I know there is . . . I'm looking at it right now."_

_"Not everyone's worth saving."_

Oliver Queen and Clark Kent, "Doomsday" (_Smallville)_

* * *

_". . . being better . . . means people like her getting away with murder? . . . we'd rather be the bad guys!"_

Plastique (_Smallville)_

_**.*.*.*.**_

_"Clark, the mark of a true hero is somebody who's willing to sacrifice his own personal morality to keep the world safe."_

_"No one has the right to choose who lives or dies."_

Tess Mercer and Clark Kent, "Injustice" (_Smallville_)

* * *

_"Lex did teach me one thing: the word "fate" is used by people who've lost sight of who they are."_

Clark Kent (_Smallville_)

_**.*.*.*.**_

_"It isn't always about where your heart is. It's about what you've done, and what you're going to do."_

Davis Bloome, "Eternal" (_Smallville_)

* * *

_"Are you listening to yourself? . . . You've really crossed a line here! . . . This is _murder_!"_

_"This is _justice_! Although Clark may not be able to accept that, you know what I did was right."_

_". . . . Please don't stand there and look so innocent . . . Now that Lex is gone . . . you can't tell me you're not relieved."_

Chloe Sullivan and Oliver Queen, "Requiem" (_Smallville_)

* * *

**Vision 28: I'm Your Worst Nightmare (Light)**

I sat cross-legged on the roof of Light Yagami's next door neighbor's home. From here I had a perfect view through Light's window into his bedroom. Unfortunately, if someone were to look out said window at any particular moment in time, they'd also have an oh-so-perfect view of _me. _So, of course, I made myself invisible while I waited for Light to fall asleep.

I laid my cheek in my hand, boredly watching as Light scribbled some shit down onto a piece of paper. Ryuk was lying down on Light's bed, munching away on an apple. Which reminds me, I should probably set up a "time of death" for myself, just in case . . . I didn't want Ryuk blabbing off any hints about me to Light. It was crucial that Light didn't know the exact extent of my powers, because at least this way he wouldn't know what sort of guard to put up, what plan to execute. I mean, it's not like I couldn't kick his butt any day of the week if he did know, but . . . it was easier this way. Eventually I would tell him about my abilities . . . Just not now . . . especially not when it could ruin all the fun I had planned for him.

I stretched out my arms and back for a little bit, and then lay myself down onto the roof tiles, staring up into the night sky as I pondered the day's events. You see, after I'd left Naomi, or, as she would be known, Molianne (pronounced Molly-Anne) L. Elumine' back at her apartment with her fiance, I began . . . thinking . . . about a lot of things, as I'm wont to do.

I thought about what Light did . . . what he almost did . . .

I thought about the whole "good and evil" scheme . . .

I thought about the possibility of parents brainwashing their children, even as they're raising them . . .

And . . . I thought about hypocrites.

Truth be told, I never really delved too deep into that subject . . . I was a little afraid of what I would discover once I went down that road. More than that, I was afraid of what I would find inside myself . . .

I sighed, focusing my vision onto the inky blackness that lay over over everything, that vast sea of eternity broken here and there by tiny dots of sparkling light. Then my thoughts began to drift . . .

By the time Raye and I had brought Naomi into the apartment, she had a complete understanding of what was going on. And, naturally, she had questions. Questions like, "Why won't you let us help you?", "Why won't you let us into the investigation?", "What gives you the right to do this sort of thing, to decide who gets to play and who doesn't? Kira committed a federal crime against us, and we both have the right to see to it that justice is served!"

Her questions . . . they bothered me . . . a lot. I mean, think about it, how much faster would this whole Kira fiasco be over if I'd just let Naomi and Raye in on the project? How many more lives could be saved?

Then again, things had a chance of going into the complete opposite direction. For all I knew, inviting them in could quicken Kira's rise to power, and not even Near or Mello would be able to stop him once he got rolling . . . . agh, I think about these sorts of things too much!

. . . actually, I did think about just saying, "Heck with it, Mollianne, Stephen, you're in!" . . .

**.*.*.*.**

Come to think of it, this scene was one of the several places in my visions where things kind of . . . branched off. There were the canon visions . . . with just me and L and good ol' Kira himself . . . and then there were the others . . . but . . . some of the visions . . . those "things that could have been" . . . they were blocked off to me. I didn't know what was going to happen. Perhaps it was because . . . well, I understood myself (more or less), I kind of understood Kira and L and Misa, so therefore I could "predict" where things would go if I played the Ryuk to L's Kira . . . anything other than that . . . I suppose that's where whatever "Gods" up there start throwing the dice.

I wanted to bring them along with me, I really did . . . and I probably will, once the future catches up with the present, I mean, if there are repercussions, I can still protect L and the others . . . right? Damn it, why am I doubting myself so much? Come to think of it . . . in this future . . . why didn't I just let Molly and Steve come along, "Cosmic Balance" be damned?

**.*.*.*.**

. . . but, well, I didn't. That was . . . the "fact" . . .

I closed my eyes, then opened them again and sat up. I pulled my cell out of my pocket, flipped it open, and dialed a number. The phone ringed about two or three times before someone picked up.

"John?" I asked. ". . . Yeah, it's me."

I considered asking him _'Have you executed any other poor fuckers today?'_, but that seemed a little rude. I may not approve of Jigsaw's methods, but . . . for some strange reason, I kind of respect him. I don't think I even hate him, I just . . . I don't know . . . there's something about him . . .

Maybe it's because he's old. Old's supposed to equal wise, so, maybe that's it . . . because, let's just face it, his traps, whatever good intentions there were . . . they were brutal. No one should have had to go through that, no matter how bad they were . . . so, for all his intentions, Jigsaw was a "bad guy" wasn't he? . . .

And anyway, with their karma, the would-be victims'd probably end up screwing themselves over anyway . . . Agh, you know what, never mind.

Bottom line: Murderer, psycho, misunderstood enigma . . . however you see Jigsaw . . . I respect him . . . a little bit . . .

. . .

I wouldn't invite him over to any family dinners anytime soon, though.

BUT, back to the conversation . . . I, ah, was feeling a little bit too conflicted to be making up a little black comedy (why didn't I just say that, sheesh!).

"Hey, listen, I have this guy I'd like you to meet if you're interested." I continued, twirling a lock of my hair around my right finger. "We're not friends, just so you know. I hate the bastard." I paused for a bit, then went on "His name's Light Yagami, but he's known to the greater part of . . . well, _this_ particular world as Kira. You see . . ."

_**.*.*.*.**_

_(Hours later)_

AGH! FINALLY! I'd thought he'd never go to sleep.

I picked up a white half mask (and by "half" I mean "covers the right half of my face") from where it had lain next to me. Before I got here, I'd decided to doll myself up for when I made my grand entrance. Along with the Phantom of the Opera Mask, I wore a black cape, a black poet's shirt with long sleeves, loose black pants, and knee-high pirate boots. I also wore leather gloves that extended halfway up between my elbow and my wrist.

I'd painted the left side of my face entirely black, and I wore my hair, just a couple of inches or so past shoulder-length, down in it's curly, shaggy, everloving mess . . . I swear, it was more of a wig than actual hair . . .

In the shadows, the only thing you'd probably be able to see of me, would be the pearlescent white mask, and the whites of my eyes. Everything else was pure black.

I stood up, feeling the wind pick up behind me, blowing my cape off to the side, and some of my hair following suit. I looked down at the window with cold eyes, and then jumped the short distance between Light's bedroom and the roof. I landed silently on the wood-paneled floor, and slowly picked myself up. I made myself visible again, and looked over at Ryuk, who was standing by the door, staring at me in curiosity, head tilted to one side. I grinned devilishly at him, flashing my pearly whites, and put a finger to my lips.

"Shhhhhh!" I whispered.

Ryuk chuckled a little, and stood by and watched as I walked over to Light's bed, glared at him for a few moments, laid my hand on his forehead, and then suddenly disappeared in a flash of white light.

_**.*.*.*.**_

**It was dark inside his dream. Nothing but black everywhere. I knew that I was standing on a floor of some sort . . . or, was it only there because I conjured it up? You know, knee-jerk reaction, you need something to stand on. I looked around, and there, several feet in front of me, was Light, the Bastard himself. He was the only thing visible in this dream. His back was turned to me, while his head was turned up towards the "sky". I could see the color of his hair, his shirt, his dress pants, and his stupid shoes. It seemed that the only light in this room . . . came from him.**

**A sign of egotism? Perhaps.**

**I could feel his thoughts around me . . . it wasn't like mind reading . . . it was like . . . listening in to someone else's conversation through only one ear, while the rest of you was focused, or trying to focus, on something else. It was kind of like being in a room of people. Like . . . see there, that "person" said that Light had been thinking about the voice all day. Trying to remember where he'd heard it from, who it was who'd invaded his personal space, and what danger she could pose to him. Another "person" said that he finally figured it out when he looked casually at the TV screen his little sister, Sayu, was staring at. She was watching one of Senyaita Boulibashi's latest concerts on T. V., excitedly exclaiming how cool she was, wishing that she could meet her one day. Sayu turned around in her seat, and, whipping out the old Bambi eyes asked 'Pretty Please, Will You Take Me To Sen's Concert Raito?' Chuckling, he'd said he'd think about it.**

**Turning his eyes to the screen, he gradually felt himself go hard and cold on the inside. It was her. He didn't know how, or why, but . . . it was her. The voice was her . . . how did she . . .**

**I looked over to my right. There was a third "person", he was the one asking the most questions about Senyaita Boulibashi, trying to come up with theories . . . knowing that unless he could arrange for a way for them to meet face to face . . . or else, unless he could provoke her somehow into showing off some of her other abilities so he could study her a little . . . he was screwed.**

**Next to that "person", was the fourth. This one was thinking that perhaps he was worrying about this too much. Maybe he'd only imagined somebody sinisterly whispering inside his head . . . Yeah, and maybe his real name was Jekyll Hyde. No, he didn't waste his time thinking about nonsense things like that . . . his feet were firmly rooted into the real world, the world in which he lived in, the world where he was going to make a difference! . . . . but still . . .**

**Clearly, this guy was **_**really**_**divided on the subject. Oh well. I smiled, turned my gaze towards Light, and said**

"Good evening, Mr. Light Yagami."

**My voice echoed across the room, sending a chill up Light's spine. I'd used the same eerily calm and reasonable voice that I'd used when I first met Raye as my introduction.**

**Light turned, and stared at me warily, a dark, angry, distrustful look in his eyes. They widened a little at my fantastical appearance, but . . . otherwise stayed the same. Oh yeah, he knew he was in trouble.**

**At least, I hope so, or this wouldn't be any fun at all.**

**I smirked at him, clasped my hands together, and then opened my arms wide in a sort of "welcoming" gesture, dropping back into my "normal" mannerisms as I said:**

"Weeeeeeeeee need to talk."

**Then, faster than he could blink, I punched him in the face, blood spouting from where I'd broken his nose. The force from the hit caused him to fall back, and he braced himself instinctively for impact. However, in another instant, I whirled around him and threw my leg up in the air, moving it around in an arc to meet and thereon collide with Light's spine, right in the middle of his back. This threw him forward a few feet, and he landed on the ground with a thud. A little dazed, Light struggled to pick himself back up, but I wouldn't let him. I shoved him down onto the floor with my boot. My foot pressed onto his back, somewhere around the base of his neck, where I suppose the back of where his collarbone would be.**

**I leaned down and grabbed an arm, pulling it backwards and I moved my foot a little lower on his back, in order to give me more leverage. And when I say "Pulled his arm backwards", I don't mean clockwise. I mean **_**counterclockwise. **_**This way, I figured, it would probably, really hurt if I pulled too hard and it . . .**

'snap!'

**. . . Did that.**

**"AAAAAAAHHH!" Light yelled in agony.**

**I smirked a little. You know, I should not be enjoying this, I really shouldn't be . . . but I was.**

**I grabbed onto the collar of his shirt with my free hand and swung him around in a semicircle before I let him fly up into the . . . . let's call it "higher" abysses of his mind . . . and proceded to beat him into a freaking pulp. Nothing too fancy, just a few kicks here, a several dozen punches there . . . oh, he is NOT gonna be happy when he wakes up in the morning!**

**Heheh . . .**

**I grabbed his head and rammed it into a wall, crushing a part of his skull in the process. A shudder went through me as I felt the vibrations from the impact travel up my arm. And I grinned. This felt good, really good. But you know what? I WASN'T DONE YET! Let's see how many other ways I could hurt this guy!**

**I cackled evilly. Then I raised my hand into the air, turned my fingers into razor-sharp, silver-plated steel knives, and then I dug them into his skin, his intestines . . .**

**After that, I raked them across his face, drawing blood. Then I kneed him hard in the gut and let him fall to the floor.**

**I gave myself a few minutes to heal him, and then continued on with my little Project: Let's Scare the Living Shit out of Light Yagami . . . although now the whole thing had kind of morphed into a sort of torture session . . . but what can I say? I was still a little ticked off, I needed a punching bag, and I couldn't exactly work with him if he was** _**already**_**torn to bits and bruised to living death, now can I?**

**So . . . I broke his leg, broke his neck, tore his heart out, then, after crushing it into a bloody writhing mess in my hand, I shoved it back into his chest. Then I healed him.**

**I gouged his eyes out, cut out his tongue, cut off his hands . . . then, after thinking for a bit, gave him back one eyeball so he could watch crocodiles feast upon those things that were most precious to him: Tongue for Lies, Hands for Death, Eyes for . . . . a makeshift Shinigami.**

**Then I made the beasts cough his flesh and bones back up and, because I was feeling rather ruthless at the moment, shoved the disgusting mass down his throat. Then I removed the taste from his mouth and healed him again.**

**That was the pattern. Beat, maim, scar, heal. Beat, maim, scar, heal. Repeat.**

**There was blood and gore everywhere, I vaguely noted. Some chunks of Light's hair had been ripped from his skull and simply lay on random spots on the ground when I didn't feel like reattaching them to his head. Pieces of Light's torn clothing lay around us as well. In one place was a pile of acrid vomit from where I made him excruciatingly sick and forcibly made him puke up his guts.**

**I used some "behind-the-back" techniques, like when I let him alone for a few seconds to get his bearings, then popped up behind him, grabbed his head then roughly turned it left and right, breaking the bones in his neck. Then I tore his head off. His piercing screams shot through the air . . . I think I'd still be hearing those same screams ringing in my ears when I was finished with this. Of course I didn't let him die . . . I just let him suffer, like I felt he deserved.**

**Eventually . . . my attacks kind of . . . lessened somewhat . . . to a degree. They weren't, I guess, nightmarish . . . honestly it had begun to dwindle down to a sort of street fight, except I was the one pulling all the punches. I guess you could say I was **_**kind of**_** calming down, but . . . no. I wasn't calm. Nowhere near calm. I wanted to beat him. I wanted to hurt him . . . . and I drew great satisfaction from his pain, especially after everything he'd done . . . . or at least would do . . .**

**I stopped beating him for a moment, and held him up by the torn collar of his white and bloody shirt, so that we were eye to eye. I looked into his brown eyes, feeling oddly detached. It was the first time all night that I let myself look at something objectively. No opinions, no questions, no emotions. I just stared, with what I'd assume was a very dark expression.**

**Light's head lay lax as he stared back at me. They looked tired . . . defeated? . . . accepting? No, it can't be. It wasn't over, I could feel it. Maybe he'd realized there was a point to what I was doing to him, and he was waiting for the finishing statement. My brows furrowed in anger, and I threw him hard into the unforgiving ground, then tore after him so I could continue wailing on him.**

**I was mad. I was mad because . . . I didn't know what I was feeling at this very moment, even as I felt the emotions come and go. I could recognize them just fine, but I just . . . couldn't identify with them.**

**Come to think of it, I wasn't sure if I'd ever felt real anger towards Light, or hate. Actually, no, I did feel a sort of anger, that part was real, along with some kind of frustration that I couldn't really describe.**

**. . . You know how when you really feel like hurting somebody (for whatever reason), you can always think up **_**exactly**_**how you're going to do it? With me, it was like I didn't even have a clue! Every move I made was thought up off the top of my head. Then again, madness . . . anger . . . hate. It's not something that can really be rationalized, is it?**

**Don't get me wrong, people, I hate Light Yagami. I really do. But . . . what I felt right now . . . for some reason, I didn't believe it was cold hate, or hot anger . . .**

**I finished him off with a powerful punch to the jaw, sending him up into the sky once again, and then I yanked him out of the air and threw him down onto a bed of spikes.**

**I slowly and calmly floated down to where Light lay, writhing and gasping in pain. My hands hung limp at my sides.**

_**'This isn't fun anymore.'**_**I thought. I clenched my fists, and then relaxed them.**

**. . . All I wanted was to see Light get his ass kicked for all the terrible things he's done, and I wanted to be the one who brought that pain upon him. The pain of all those people he killed . . . all of it . . . brought back upon him sevenfold. And yet somehow, I felt . . . _conflicted._**

**My feet landed softly on the ground. I walked towards Light's helpless form, lifted a hand, and waved everything away. The blood, the gore, the spikes, his wounds, the torn chunks of hair. I even fixed his clothes for him. However, I didn't get rid of all the pain, just most of it, enough to where the most he'd be feeling right now would be a sort of muffled ache. His cuts would feel some burning, and he'd have a hell of a migraine later . . . but whatever. So long as he was conscious, and had a clear mind ready for our real talk, I didn't give a damn. I guess I was feeling a little bitter here too, along with all the confusion.**

**I didn't like it. I didn't like feeling that everything that I was feeling right now was wrong. If I was feeling this, then it had to mean that I wasn't sure, that I wasn't set on the goals that I'd come to achieve. It would mean that . . . I wasn't sure if I really believed in my cause, aside from keeping L and Quillish Whammy and a whole lot of other people alive . . .**

**But why? Why would I question myself? What was wrong?**

**I watched him lie there for a bit. He was breathing heavily, and sweating a little. I gave him five minutes, then I said harshly**

**"Get up."**

**He looked out at me from the corner of his eyes. Our gazes locked, and never wavered as he shakily pulled himself up. He stood, and when I felt satisfied that he wasn't going to fall back down on his ass, I said sardonically "Light, meet your worst nightmare. Worst Nightmare, meet Light."**

**Silence . . . then**

**"Not the worst I've ever had." The answer was blunt, nonchalant. Look at me, I'm tough, you don't scare me . . . WHAT!**

**I smirked at him, grinning. "I'll admit, today was rather uninspired, but I doubt you're ever gonna meet anybody who can make you feel like that again."**

**Light glared angrily at me, the dark expression in his eyes only adding fuel to the fire as my smile grew wider.**

**"Who are you?" he demanded.**

**My grin slid off my face. I gave him a blank look, and tilted my head. "I don't believe there's any point for that, do you?" I said matter-of-factly, using a tone that was clearly mocking his intelligence.**

**I saw him grit his teeth, and smirked again. He was so much fun to mess with! After this is over, I'm gonna be planning some new ways to _really_ piss him off.**

**Soon, however, my grin slid off my face, turning into a more somber expression.**

**"Listen to me, Light Yagami." I said, "I have come here to give you one last chance. Understand that you can do no good with the power of the Death Note. You may save lives, you may lower the crime rate . . . but eventually the Death Note is going to consume you . . . until there is nothing left, and Light Yagami will cease to exist."**

**"More importantly, you won't be able to stop the onset of evil. Like anything else in the world, evil adapts, it changes until it can become as one with the shadows again. Do you understand what I am saying? I understand you have had good intentions, but being able to kill somebody with a name and face won't make you a God, it won't make the world you dream of. If you keep on doing what you're doing now, not only you, but the entire world will turn into a darker, twisted place. Instead of a world of peace, love, and happiness, the world that you would have created will be one of fear. People will become suspicious of each other, worrying for their lives, even as they worship their precious "god" who they believe will protect them no matter what. Eventually, they'll start pointing fingers at each other, and even if none of them have done anything wrong a good portion of them will end up being ostracized . . . outcasts. Not only that, but not all of the criminals will just go away. Instead, they'll just figure out a new method to use in order to integrate into the system so they can continue doing what they do now."**

**"I'm saying that your fight against evil is hopeless. We must always do the right thing, or at least try to. If someone is getting hurt, we must do all that we can in order to help . . . But if there is a way to completely get rid of evil . . . this isn't it.**

**"The Death Note is going to turn you into a monster, Light. It will hurt you and your family in ways you can't imagine. I want to prevent that from happening, and so now I'm asking that you give the Death Note to me . . . or destroy it. Your choice."**

**Light had listened to all this silently, his expression revealing nothing. Finally, he said "Is that all you have to say? I'm disappointed."**

**When I didn't answer, he went on "The Death Note is just a tool. A means to an end. You must not know me very well if you would actually believe me to be so weak . . . that I'd succumb to a mere _tool_ . . .**

**"And despite what you'd think, evil is severely limited. So are the people who choose that path. Unfortunately, however, there are a lot of people in this world who are on that path, and they hurt many people in ways that _you_ can't imagine. Innocent men and women, who want nothing more than to live a happy life. So much is destroyed, tempered with, and warped . . . all because of evil. That is what makes the world rot even as it flourishes. How do we fix the problem? The solution is simple: Get rid of it. If you get rid of the problem, then the rest can go on in peace."**

**"On an global aspect, this "simple" solution is rather difficult to achieve. But with the power of the Death Note . . ." He waved his hand in the air, "It's almost nothing."**

**"I may not know who you are, but I want you to understand something: Human beings have been fighting, since the dawn of time, to annihilate evil. Battles have been fought, and lives have been lost, but, all the same, even as they lost . . . they've succeeded. Gradually, parts of the world have become a better and better place because human beings destroyed those who would cause them harm, clearing the way for scientists, doctors, researchers and philosophers to build the world we know today. The world you know now, made it's roots in sacrifice . . . and so has Kira. I had to sacrifice a little bit of myself so I could stomach the responsibility for all those lives I taken . . . and I've been made a better man for it."**

**My eyes narrowed into slits as I glared at him. Oh, have you?**

**"I'm going to use the power of the Death Note to end the age-long war." He gestured with his hands, "I will turn this whole world around, and when you see what lies in that future . . . I know you will regret everything you've done thus far, that eventually you will sympathize with me and come over to my side, and help me maintain that beautiful new world."**

**So, he thinks that he's going to win this little game between him and L. He thinks I can't stop him . . . and now he's trying to act all decent, acting like "Even if you make the mistake now, I can still help you later, you are not lost . . . I am the Heavenly Father, all powerful and all forgiving . . . Luke, I am your father . . ." Pah!**

**"The whole world is built upon sacrifice, eh?" I asked him, raising an eyebrow. "Does that include innocent lives . . . Mr. . . . _Kira?"_**

**Light blinked in surprise.**

**"Naomi Misora and Raye Penber, Yagami. Ring a bell?" I asked, "All Raye was trying to do was the right thing. He didn't believe men should be murdered so unjudiciously like the way you have. He put his life on the line, knowing that he may be caught by Kira, because he was _good. _He wasn't trying to stop anything, except perhaps your insanity. He wants criminals gone about every bit as much as you do, however, like me, he never believed killing was the answer. And Naomi Misora? She wanted revenge because _you_ murdered her freaking husband! But she never wanted you dead, which is kind of shocking to me, to tell you the truth." I rolled my eyes to the ceiling. "And yet you killed them both because they got in the way of your so-called "precious" world."**

**I laughed at him. "And you call yourself a God, Light? You might as well be the freaking Devil."**

**"The thing is, you don't stomach shit, Light. All those lives you'd destroyed mean almost nothing to you, they're all just trash that needs to be thrown away . . . and you know what, I think you've forgotten just how heavy the burden of taking a life is, Kira, after all, all you do is write on a piece of paper, and the bad guys just . . . "go away"!" I waved my hands in the air in a sort of "shooing" gesture.**

**"Death is hard, Kira, and so is killing. If it ever gets easier, you know there's something wrong with you. And guess what, Kira? You're no different from anybody else!" I walked around him in a circle, like a wild cat cornering it's prey. "Do you want to know what's wrong with _you, _Light? . . . You're drunk! You're drunk on the power of the Death Note, and now you don't want to let go of it, even for the world."**

**"BULLSHIT!" Light raged, "I've held on to the damn thing for so long for the sake of the world!"**

**"And I can see why. Every time you kill someone, some poor sap you've managed to save claps their hands and says "Thanks, Kira! Good boy!" You get off on that, so it makes you want to kill even more people! Just how far do you think that's going to go?" I yelled.**

**I was getting mad again. I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath.**

**I saw Light grit his teeth, and then he forced himself to relax as well. "Be that as it may," he said, "That doesn't change the fact that I saved a life. By killing all those criminals, I've saved thousands of lives. It sickens me to think that you'd actually put me on the same level as _them."_**

**I stayed quiet. Was I ever going to go anywhere with this guy?**

**"If you knew . . . exactly what kind of people I've killed, you wouldn't be feeling this way. Surely you know as much as I do that there are people who truly don't deserve to live after what they've done."**

**I looked away from him, staring into the dark, blank spaces of his mind. He may have a point, but . . .**

**"What if they regretted what they done?" I asked, looking back at him, "What if some, if anyone, of those people you killed, truly felt sad and sickened by what they'd done? What about forgiveness?"**

**When Light didn't respond, I continued, "You're right. There are a lot of disgusting people out there, and there are some that I can't even stand being in the same room with! But all the same, people need to be forgiven, Kira. People need a second chance. No matter what, they deserve it. It's their right, and by killing off all those people, you're depriving them of it, of that second chance. You're deprive them of redemption, you're deprive them of their deliverance. And what about those poor men and women who are set up by the **_**real**_ **bad guys, eh? What about them? Even if you managed to catch the real criminal, you wouldn't be able to get them out of jail, because everybody else thinks they're bad! Face it Light, the Death Note is not a cure-all. Never has been never will be . . . and you know something else?"**

**My voice was deadly calm as I finished** **"You're not a God, Kira, you're a** _**bitch**_**. You're a spoiled brat, a kid! To even think of calling yourself a God is plain despicable!"**

**"You take and you take and you take . . . When was the last time you ever gave something, Kira?"**

**Light stared at me, motionless, with cold, dark eyes.**

**"Your naivete astounds me." I raised an eyebrow at him in question.**

**"Do you honestly believe I do all this without thinking? For a woman of your caliber, I would have expected better, but instead I get schoolyard bullying and a self-righteous speech. And also . . ." I glared at him, clenching my fists in anger.**

**"Let me ask you this: Would you honestly say that a serial rapist, who takes delight in what he does, deserves forgiveness? If a psychopathic murderer killed your entire family, wouldn't you want him dead as well? Could you look me straight in the eye, and tell me cannibals shouldn't be eliminated?"**

**I bit my lip. He had me on that one.**

**"And even if any one of those bastards felt _remotely _sorry about what they'd done, then all that means is that I'm doing them a favor. If they ever recognized the remorse in their hearts, they'd know that they didn't deserve to live, and I highly doubt that they'd want to. In other words, their deaths _are_ their deliverance."**

**"As for those two F. B. I. agents . . . I regret nothing. Sometimes things have to be discarded in order for progress to go on."**

**That last comment set me off.**

**"Are you ser- . . .?" I started, before Light cut across me.**

**"That's life, woman. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, and if you're not careful, some people will just step all over you. And one more thing . . . there is one vital flaw in your argument: For all the "bad" that I've done, you still believe that I'm doing the right thing."**

**I blinked in surprise, taken aback.**

**"Oh, don't act like you don't know. I may not know your whole story, but I'm guessing you've run into somebody at some point that you've desperately wanted to kill, but you held yourself back and you've regretted it ever since."**

**I wanted to protest, but, I didn't. It felt like my voice was caught in my throat.**

**What the hell?**

**"And let me guess, the reason you'd decided to approach me like this was because I'd killed someone you dearly loved too? Like I did with Naomi Misora? If I'd never killed him or her, you'd probably never come after me in the first place, now would you?"**

**That was true, but it was a moot point, because if L _had_ lived, he would have kicked Light's ass all over the flipping place.**

**But wait . . . if the only reason I'd come was for L, then . . . what about everybody else?**

**"I can see you're still confused. Well, let me spell it out for you: You're a hypocrite. The only reason you're here is because certain choices I've made while I was working towards my goal of world peace didn't suit your purposes, and now here you are, trying to "make things right." In actuality, you believe evil needs to be annihilated as well. If you had it your way, you'd do it yourself. You'd destroy them all."**

**I clenched my fists, gritting my teeth as I stared down at the ground.**

**No . . . no . . .**

**"Now here's a question I must ask you: Why haven't you done it already? Why do you continue to hold yourself back even though you know that this needs to be done?"**

**I closed my eyes, and then looked up at him again, staring him right in the eyes.**

**"Because you're wrong." I answered. "I may be "naive", but even a woman like me knows that there's always another way to fight evil, even destroy it . . . "**

**"That "way", ironic as it sounds, doesn't have to involve death. If anything, the death penalty should be a last resort, the _very_ . . . last resort, hell, I'm not even sure if we should use it at all if it's going to escalate into _this!" _I swung my arm around me in an arc, my hand clenched into a fist. I rammed that fist into an invisible brick wall, just for the sake of letting off a little steam.**

**We stared each other down, neither one of us moving an inch. After a few moments, Light said "It's necessary."**

**I felt a torrent of emotions whirling around and crashing into each other, like a series of cyclones stuck in my chest. Finally, I said**

**"So . . . that's it then."**

**Light didn't answer.**

**I took some calming breaths, inhaling and exhaling silently through my nose. I turned around, and started walking way, my cape billowing behind me.**

**"You've made your choice, then . . . Yagami." I looked over my shoulder at him, so that, from where he was standing, he could see the Phantom mask shining in the darkness.**

**". . . and so have I." With all the worries and doubts that came included with the package.**

**I continued walking, and at the last second turned around on my heel. Raising a finger, I said "You know . . . I may be one of the Masters of Pain . . . but I'm not so good at the whole "nightmare" thing. However . . . I know some people who _are."_**

**The sound of footsteps arose in the dream. There were thousands of them, all heading toward the center of the "room" where Light stood. And those footsteps . . . the rattling sound of chains.**

**I twisted my hand in the air so that the palm of my hand faced the "ceiling". In that one movement, I cast light over the shadowy figures that moved ever closer and closer. They emerged from behind me, and then stopped.**

**One of those figures was a very old man, wizened, with white hair and ice blue eyes. He wore a black robe with red lining. He held his hands clasped together in front of him, his expression almost stoic as he studied Light, calculating perhaps.**

**The next one was also a man, a burn victim perhaps, telling from the pink, wrinkled skin. He had a worn, brown fedora hat on his head, and he wore a frayed, dirty, red-and-green sweater. He also wore a glove on one hand, which was equipped with long, razor sharp blades. This man was grinning manically at Light, which, along with his yellowed teeth reminded him vaguely of Ryuk, except this smile actually scared him a little, although he couldn't imagine why . . .**

**The third figure was . . . a clown? He had white skin, and green hair. What should have been the whites of his eyes were a pale yellow, and his irises were a startling green. His lips were a dark red, it almost looked like they'd been painted on . . . except . . . it looked natural too. He wore a purple suit and an orange shirt with a green tie. An innocent looking flower sat on the left side of his chest. This man, whoever he was . . . was grinning crazily at him. The mirth in his smile also reminded him of Ryuk, but . . . Light had a feeling that this . . . was a ruthless man who knew no limits.**

**The fourth . . . was a little difficult to describe. Light guessed he was also a man, but his stature was way too large for any normal human being. His expression was hidden by a hockey mask. Light saw a machete clutched in the "man's" right hand, and in the left . . . a long chain, that jerked, and twitched and rattled every few seconds, but despite this, the "man" never lost his grip.**

**"Light . . ." I said softly, almost kindly "I want you to meet, two of my friends, one of my proteges, and the local asswipe: John Kramer, also known as the Jigsaw Killer . . . Freddy Krueger, the local boogeyman . . . Jason Voorhees . . . and the Joker."**

**"I must say Miss . . . SEEEEEEEE! AHAHAHA!" the green-haired man, which Light had assumed was the Joker, laughed. He thought that the man was about to say something, something important, like the girl's name, but he caught himself in time. His cackling laugh sent chills up Light's spine. This man must be the epitome of insanity, he thought.**

**"You are really, MUCH too kind to me, my good woman! You never told me I was your _friend! _Why, if you were lonely, you could have told me, instead of yanking me out of my bout with the Bat, AHAHAHA!"**

**I looked at the Joker briefly, then turned towards Light again. "As you can see, even though I may not have been able to give you the nightmare you deserve . . ." I pointed my thumbs to the left and right side of me. "These guys can! And so now, I must bid you, adieu" I bowed, and turned away for the last time, my cape bellowing behind me again. As I reached the door and laid my hand on the knob, I murmured "Have fuuuuun!"**

**I opened the door, and closed it behind me, even as Lights screams reached my ears. I walked a few steps down the hallway, which was an endless series of shades of gray, with a bright white light shining way down the corridor. I stood there for a few minutes, having second thoughts, and then turned around and quickly opened the door again, yelling**

**"And don't kill him either! OR drive him insane! You guys hear me, I NEED THIS GUY ALIVE AND OF SOUND MIND BY TOMORROW MORNING, CAPEESH?"**

**I then slammed the door closed, locked it, and stalked away.**

.*.*.*.

As I walked out of his dream . . . I asked myself that same stupid question again: Who was I to decide what was right and wrong? Who was I to meddle with something that's already been planned? A girl who wanted to save a life? Or was I someone who just wanted to serve her own self-righteous purposes? Was I only saving L just to make myself feel better, or was it because I actually cared about him? Damn me and my stupid doubts . . . damn, Kira . . . did he get to me?

No . . . no, of course I care about him, you idiot! How could you think otherwise?

. . . Because . . . . There's a little evil inside me too.

I frowned, feeling my heart clench in pain a little as I thought this. For all that I am . . . I have a dark side (Hell, who doesn't?) . . . and my greatest fear is that, one day, it will break loose . . . and become the new Sen.

I closed my eyes, and shook off the dark thoughts, forcing them away from the forefront of my subconscious. When I opened my eyes I was standing in Light's room, staring out his window into the night sky, where a pearly white crescent moon hung, high above us.

"Hahaha! That was great!" Someone said behind me.

I turned my head over my shoulder and saw Ryuk floating near the door, shaking in mirth as he chuckled under his breath.

Then I looked back towards Light Yagami. He was covered in cuts and bruises, and chunks of his hair was missing. His bedsheets were soaked in blood, and a scent . . . it was faint, but foul-smelling . . . hung about him. I wondered how he was going to explain all this to his mother. I shrugged it off. I didn't really care, and it really wasn't my problem, even though it'd probably be really funny to see.

"So what happens now?" Ryuk asked.

I tilted my head as I looked at him again, and then turned my gaze upwards towards the moon.

"You're just going to have to wait and see, Ryuk . . . you'll enjoy it . . . I know you will."

* * *

A/N - For those of you who are wondering what that chain Jason was holding was attached to . . . it was zombies. Lots and lots of zombies . . . You know, just . . . _party favors_.

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Horrible Dream – Ayria**

**1, 2, Freddy's Coming for You (A/N - You know the one . . . not sure if this is a track you can actually get off I-Tunes, but . . .well, there ya go)**

**Freddy's Theme - Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)**

**Wanna be Startin' Somethin' - Michael Jackson**

**This Ain't a Scene - Fall Out Boy**

**Die, Die, My Darling - Metallica**

**Nightmare - Avenged Sevenfold**


	12. Zeromancer

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

**ALSO DISCLAIMER: I do not own this song, Zeromancer does . . . it's called "Dr. Online"**

**A/N - Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to present to you, my little experiment. I was going to do this in script form, but GODDAMMIT, I found out you're not allowed to do that, so this is the result. Now, I had no idea what I was thinking when I decided to do this, but, hell, let me know how it goes. If you like it, I'll do this again later, that is, if it's not against FanFiction rules . . . by my understanding, the following shouldn't technically be a "script" . . . **

**A/N - You know what I really hate? When your damn computer crashes and all the little inspirations and brainblasts and what-have-you get thrown out the window! DAMMIT! Luckily I can remember most of them still, but DAMMIT! . . . well, anyway here's the update.**

* * *

**Vision 29: Music Video**

**(1-800-SUICIDE)**

I wore a black dress with white polka dots all over it. Short-sleeved, sort of scrunches up at the shoulder, with a skirt length that dropped to just above my knees. A black belt hung on my waist. No buckles, just a leather strap. The dress was also low cut, in terms of the collar, which dropped down to a point in the center of my chest. It revealed some skin, but no cleavage. I also wore a pair of what I like to call, the "Secretary" glasses, which were black as well. The glasses had a slender, rhombus shape, the better to highlight my dark eyes, which, at this particular moment, had a very mischievous shine to them. A chain of small pearls trailed from the top-left and top-right corner of the glasses to behind my left and right ears, respectively, where it would stop on the handle. I also wore a pair of black 2-3" high heeled shoes.

I broke the mold during this video and made the decision to wear some makeup on my face: Black eyeliner and silver eye shadow, along with some gaudy red lipstick, whose color really seemed to stick out on my face.

I had done my hair up in my usual pony-tail, except this time I styled it so my hair fell down in sassy curls down the back of my neck. I let a few loose locks of wavy hair out of my ponytail and let them rest here and there on my forehead, just for a little style.

I sat in a room with blinding white walls. There was no visible door from the camera's standpoint. The only things in the room were a dark-colored mahogany desk that lay in the center of the room, and the black swivel chair on which I sat.

And . . . cue the music!

**[Music starts, phone rings]**

I turn around in my swivel-chair, laying back against one of its' leather-padded arms, my legs crossed and propped up on the other arm, with one foot dangling in the air. I moved my foot up and down in a sort of "tapping" motion in time to the beat. I'm filing my nails, painted the same bloody red as my mouth. Giving off a rather sly expression, I say

_**"Everybody online?"**_

Tilting my head to the side and running my tongue over her bottom teeth, drawing it up to the point on my right "fang" on the top half of my mouth. Call it my attempt at making an alluring "saucy" look.

I look up towards the ceiling, and the camera pans upward, giving the viewer a flash of light, then a slight blur as the colors go from white to gray to black.

The black recedes, and out of that comes images of people falling over, dead from heart attacks. One scene depicts a random white male, brown-haired, clutching his chest and looking like he's going to choke. He collapses, a look of horror and utter terror on his face. His hand reaches outward desperately towards the camera, futilely grasping at the air, then it falls to the ground, limp. The camera pans outward to show people dying everywhere, not just criminals. Let's see, background's gray, buildings and people are in varying shades of black with grey highlighting the contours of the people and buildings . . . Then the video transitions to a new scene: A pile of bodies, a gray sky with black clouds scattered across it. On top of corpse pile stands a man (Guess who? Not that anybody in the Death Note world besides Light and possibly L will be able notice), his hair blowing in the wind. His face is turned down towards the ground, so that his hair covers his eyes and leaves them in shadow. A red letter "K" in Cloister Black font emerges from his chest. Kira turns his face upwards, and stares into the camera with red, evil-looking eyes, in which lies a dark, deep-seated hate. The camera pans through the image of the eyes, through to the black pupils. Which leads us to the next scene.

I'm standing on a tall building. My black wavy hair, drawn up into a ponytail, blows in the wind. I'm wearing a black leather tank tank top, black leather pants, a black belt with a silver buckle, and black combat boots, which also have silver buckles. I also have on elbow-length, finger-less black leather gloves, which have silver caps sitting on the knuckles, for defense, and of course for fighting. A dismal expression is on my face as I look out at a brilliantly lit city. Concrete, cars, and people lie several miles below from where I stand. This time, the sky is a dark blue, almost black. There is no moon visible, but there are a few stray stars. The city is big, and stretches out into almost every direction except one, the one facing my right side. Standing from my left, you can see a fuzzy shape that looks like a series of large hills, or mountains. An ocean is probably close by, somewhere.

_**It's the beginning of the end**_

Expression is a little grim, and definitely sad. Something in my face will seem a little queer to some of the people watching, but they will also be able to see a bit of wisdom too. Overall my face is composed, calm, and contemplative.

_**You want things to go faster**_

I narrow my eyes in anger.

_**It's the beginning of the end**_

_**Now everything's too slow for you**_

My expression changes, and I look at the camera, which is standing on my left, with my head tilted at an angle.

_**It's the beginning of the end**_

I turn my face back towards the city.

_**You are one**_

I take a step in time with the beat.

_**step**_

(Step.)

_**closer . . .**_

(Step.)

Now I'm standing at the edge of the building, the camera can see my field of vision as I stare down at the street below. Street lights are on, cars are whizzing past, and a few black shapes of random people are walking by.

_**It's the beginning of the end**_

Camera turns to back to me, where it can view me from the waist up. I open my mouth to sing, lifting a hand up to the sky, and turns my face upwards.

_**Say . . .**_

A scythe, large, about my height, appears in my hand. I grip the weapon tightly in my hand. The handle is black, blade is silver with swirling, intricate designs on it, and, of course, razor sharp. I lower my arm so that the end of the scythe (the one without the blade) touches the ground.

_**Amen!**_

I grab the scythe with my other hand and kneel to the ground on one knee. I lay my forehead against my clasped hands, giving off the effect of a bizarre "praying" position.

_**1-800-SUICIDE**_

Lift the scythe and swing the blade down and around in a figure eight motion. Bring the blade back around so it rests on right shoulder. Blade can be seen from behind my head. My face is turned towards the camera.

_**Or maybe Doctor Online can help you die**_

Tilt head.

Abrupt scene change: Black out. The camera sees an image of running feet, and pans out to see me jogging in time to the beat.

_**You need wings to fly**_

On "fly" I take off into the air, my arms outspread.

_**You need someone to take your place when you are gone**_

The camera watches as my figure flies farther and farther away, soon becoming a black mark on the night sky.

_**It's the beginning of the end**_

New scene: I'm floating on my back, high in the air, the twinkling lights of a city down below. Still nighttime. My arms are outstretched to either side of me, so I'm giving the impression of a human "cross"

_**(You . . . know)**_

_**Nothing lasts forever**_

I turn my head and look down below, a little depressed.

_**A beginning of a trend**_

_**(You . . . need)**_

A blur of color, and we're back on the ground again. People are walking back and forth across a street, smiling happily and enjoying their time doing whatever. A girl is seen twirling around and jumping in the air, punching the sky.

_**Someone there to care for you**_

We also see a young Japanese girl with short, straight hair standing in front of a TV shop, a plethora of people walking past her on the street. She's watching the TV screens with avid eyes and a big fat smile on her face. Her hands are clasped together, fingers laced, and held in front of her chest. Her eyes are dark brown, wide and hopeful, worshiping.

_**It's the beginning of the end**_

The camera shifts, so our field of vision moves past the girl, to the right side of the building. A criminal fugitive wearing worn out, shaggy clothes peaks out from behind a wall, and looks left and right looking for something

_**I don't think you understand**_

Believing that he is safe, he slowly retreats back into the alley and breaks into a run.

_**Just the beginning of a flatline . . .**_

Our view moves from the alley, to a shop across the street, where two young women, sisters, are chatting and laughing together. Switch to a view of a man's feet, running on the concrete.

**Together**

Switch back to the sisters. One of them, a beautiful brown-haired woman with long wavy curls and makeup carefully adorned, suddenly grabs at her chest in pain and falls to the ground. Her sister watches in horror, both of her hands hovering over her mouth as she prepares to let out a loud scream. At the same time, the fugitive that we have seen is now trying to make a hard left around a street corner. He trips, clutches his chest in pain as well and falls to the ground, knocking over a trash can on the way down. As he lay there on the ground, dying and in pain, the filth, rubble and other such garbage covered him like a rancid blanket.

_**1-800-SUICIDE**_

New scene: I'm spinning my scythe over my head

_**Or maybe Doctor Online can help you die**_

and then I swing it down, the blade digging into the hard concrete that I'm currently crouching over. All that can be seen of me is a black silhouette, white glowing eyes, and a manic grin.

_**You need wings to fly**_

I extend my wings, flapping them a little before distending them fully, covering the screen in a mess of darkness and ruffled feathers.

_**You need someone to take your place while you are gone**_

The black bleaches out to white, and a letter "L" in Cloister Black font appears.

_**1-800-SUICIDE**_

The camera pans out, and we see Kira's black silhouette standing with his back to "L", holding a bright red apple in his hand and grinning evilly.

_**Or maybe Doctor Online can help you die**_

Kira turns towards the "L", and suddenly the apple becomes a bloody red scythe with a ragged-edged blade. You'd call it demonic-looking.

_**You need wings to fly**_

He twirls the scythe in his hand and then flings it towards the "L", which turns out to be paper stretched over a brick wall as we see when the blade tears right through the "L", digs into the brick, and falls down a few feet before the handle completely breaks off.

_**You need someone to take your place while you are gone**_

New scene: We're back in the white room, and I'm back in my chair and polka-dot dress, sitting with my legs crossed, filing my nails and wearing a set of headphones that has a microphone attached to it.

Speaking in a business-like (and somewhat ironic) tone, I say:

_**"Thank you for calling 1-800-SUICIDE.**_

_**If you wish to self-terminate by electric shock . . . press 1!**_

Flicker of a scene of somebody working at a factory, falling over on an electrocuted fence, and then falling over dead.

Filin' the one finger!

_**For termination by overdose . . . press 2!**_

Flicker of a scene of an middle-aged man with a receding hairline bending over in front of a sink in an old bathroom. He's choking. When he falls to the ground and turns his face towards the camera, at least 100 white pills (along with a profuse amount of saliva) spill out of his mouth.

Filin' the two finger!

_**If you would like to make a reservation at our drowning pool . . . please press 3!**_

A heavily decomposed body floats up to the surface of a body of water, below a bridge next to a city. Fish start to gather around the body, then are scared away by a bunch of birds, whom proceed to eat the dead flesh of the person's body.

NUMBAH THREE!

_**For termination by hanging . . . please press 4!**_

Image of a man hanging by his neck on a rope. Alone, in a dirty room. The police burst in . . .

_**For death by self-inflicted gunshot . . . press 5!**_

A plain-looking detective with black-hair and grey eyes stands in a room, together with his partners. There is a blank look on his face. Slowly, he brings his gun up and aims it at his right temple.

_**To speak to a representative, stay on the line.**_

Done filing, I run the fingers of my left hand along my nail file, stopping to hold on to one end while the fingers on my right hand hang on to the other.

_**If you do not wish to die . . .**_

Close up to my face, my eyes gazing intently at the viewer.

_**Please hang up **_**NOW**

I break the file.

I lean back in my seat, a stoic expression on my face as the room immediately turns dark and bursts into flames. Both of my arms lay calmly on the edge of their respective armrests. Slowly, I turn my face to the black door that stands to my left. I stand and waltz myself over to the door.

_**1-800-SUICIDE**_

I open the door and playfully peek through into the room inside, before casually letting myself in.

_**Or maybe Doctor Online can help you die**_

_**You need wings to fly**_

Kira sits in a big old, comfortable armchair, in black silhouette of course. His gaze (not that it can be seen) is fixed in front of the scorching flames that lie in front of him.

_**You need someone to take your place when you are gone**_

I walk over to him, my hips swaying from side to side.

_**1-800-SUICIDE**_

A smirk steals over my face

_**Or maybe Doctor Online can help you die**_

_**You need wings to fly**_

I come up behind Kira. The chair is gone, and so is the door, there is only the darkness behind me, and fire . . . fire everywhere.

I gently wrap my hands around his neck, caressing it . . .

_**You need someone to take your place when you are gone**_

Right before I start wrenching it, tearing the muscle and snapping the bones in two. Kira's head falls off, and bounces on the floor towards the camera.

We pan to black.

* * *

**Interlude: The Aftermath**

Man, did I ever get a lot of hate mail for that one! Hahahaha! But I don't regret it. Not a single bit. Although, I will inevitably end up having second thoughts for whatever reason later . . . ah well. I just wish I could have seen Light's face! Hey Light! One of the world's top musicians knows your dirty little secret! AHAHAHAHA! And she just came within a thumbnail's breadth of broadcasting it to the whole damn world! HAHAHAHA!


	13. POV's

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

**Interlude II: Light's Perspective**

I bolted upright in my bed, my heart beating rapid-fire inside my chest. In a state of panic, I took a few gulping gasps of fresh air, only to have a searing pain shoot through my body. I grabbed at the area just a little below my heart, on my left rib cage, and fell backwards into bed, trying hard not to let out a yelp of pain, lest my sleeping family should hear.

I was sweating, breathing hard as the first pangs of pain slowly ebbed away. Ryuk was laughing his fucking head off, wrapping his arms around his stomach and rolling around in the air. I closed my eyes, tuning him out while I tried to collect myself.

My room smelled. Blood, vomit . . . and the smell of excrement and sweat. _Disgusting_ . . .

I turned my head to the side, blearily staring out my window at the cheery morning sun that shone above the nearby rooftops. After everything I had gone through last night, I could swear it was making fun of me.

A memory, dark, dingy, and grey, flickered before my eyes, and I immediately shut them against it. No . . . not now, not ever. You had me for the good part of five hours, but now I'm gone . . . you can't get me, none of you can . . . I will not fear you, I will not fear _anything!_ I took a few more deep breaths while I fought through the trauma.

I'd been tortured . . . I'd been trapped . . . and occasionally I'd been broken. I'd been forced to play numerous mind games that were almost impossible to escape. As for my opponents . . . it had seemed that I'd been pitted up against absolute _monsters_ who appeared to know me better than I knew myself. Somehow, I'd lived, but I knew it was only because they were holding back, and that was only because _that_ _woman_ . . . _**Sen**_, was holding the reins. That bitch, walking in like some kind of righteous hero, when in reality she was every bit as sadistic as those _freaks_.

Knowing the fact that I'd only survived by the hands of her "good graces" made me feel, in some twisted way, despite all the pain I was still trying to recover from, despite all the fear that had been instilled into my heart, despite all those stupid mind tricks . . .

No, it was because of all those things . . . that I felt . . . angry, frustrated . . . and _humiliated_.

_"I doubt you're ever gonna meet anybody who can make you feel like that again!"_

I gritted my teeth in anger. She was going to pay for this.

I opened my eyes, and slowly brought the hand that had been clutching at my body up to my face. It was covered in blood. A few droplets slid off of my palm and fell on my shirt. I looked down.

Shit. One of the bones from my rib cage was sticking out of my chest.

For a brief moment, Ryuk's taunting voice broke through my reverie. "Hahaha! Got you good, didn't they Light? Hahaha!"

"Shut up Ryuk" I said hoarsely. I quickly regretted it. My throat as dry as a desert, it ached so damn much . . .

_'Damn it!'_ I thought.

"This is great!" Ryuk laughed, "Just when you thought everything was going to be just dandy, _she _comes along!"

He continued laughing. I wanted to punch him for it, but I was in too much pain to move.

"I can't believe the things that girl can do! You should have seen yourself, Light! Blood was gushing out of your mouth, and your arms were bending into impossible positions _all by themselves_! Oooh, and let's not forget those screams! I don't think I've ever heard a human scream that loud!"

I tensed.

"I'd been screaming?" I asked uneasily, looking at him.

Ryuk didn't respond. He merely chuckled and stared at me with that petrified, hideous, shark-toothed grin of his.

Crap, crap, _crap_! I was screaming! Damn it, how was I supposed to . . .?

Wait . . . I was _screaming_, and neither Mom nor Sayu had come into my room to help me . . .

. . . Why?

"It's a good thing your folks didn't wake up, huh?" Ryuk broke in again.

There was an unintentional poignancy in his words . . . In full astonishment, I turned my gaze up to the ceiling.

_My family had never woken up._

Gradually, I relaxed, and closed my eyes. Of course: this was Sen's work. Given the past events, it would only make sense if she could do something as impossible as deafening my sleeping family to my cries. Over a month ago, I would never have believed that something like this could be pulled off without some form of illusion or technology, but now, obviously . . .

I opened my eyes and looked down at the bloody rib sticking out of my body. Sen's little "friends", or "accomplices" whatever those things were to her weren't as inclined to cleaning up after their mess as she had been. Then again, they probably never cared, and only wanted to see me squirm.

Out of morbid curiosity, I brushed my fingers along the bone, then quickly yanked them back.

_'Shit!'_ I thought anxiously. I needed some medical attention, _now_. This wasn't going to be easy to explain . . . **_shit!_**

Aggravated, I turned my gaze to the ceiling, and closed my eyes, trying to soothe a throbbing headache while at the same time trying to ignore all the aches and pains in my body. Then, something shifted. Gradually, I felt the pain in my body slowly ebbing away.

I looked down at myself again, and right before my eyes, the bone that had been sticking out of my body began to sink below the skin, until it disappeared, leaving nothing but a dark bloody stain behind. I stared at the spot for a few minutes, and then rubbed my fingers gently over the area where the bone had previously protruded. I blinked in surprise. The wound was gone! It still ached a little, but in general, it was completely healed! It was fixed! Amazed, but still a bit grim, I turned my gaze back up at the ceiling again.

Seems like Senyaita was taking the liberty of patching me up again. Though I couldn't really understand why, if she was so determined about "stopping" me.

I lay in bed for awhile, waiting for the rest of my wounds, or at least most of them, to heal. Ten minutes passed, and with each minute I grew noticeably stronger, less dizzy, and my thinking less hazy.

Thankfully, Ryuk eventually stopped laughing and chuckling to himself, though I could still tell that he was enjoying himself. Sometimes I actually wondered how I had ended up with him.

When I felt myself able, I shakily pulled myself back upright on the bed, bracing myself on the mattress and clutching at the sheets. After that, I dragged my legs over the side of the bed, hissing as I felt the fabric scrape over the still fresh scars that ran along the back of my legs. I clutched at the edge of the bed again.

I didn't know how long it would take for all the cuts, bruises and scars to disappear, but at the moment, I didn't care. In any case, after the last time she healed me it didn't seem as if she would decide to be as "merciful" as she had been the other times when she almost literally ripped me apart and put me back together. So instead, I had to think about what it was I was going to do with her.

When she first appeared to me, face to face, her intentions were clear, staring me in the face. Yet, her actions confused me. With her power, she could have finished me off for good. Kira would have been dead, and the world would have been "safe". So, why didn't she?

I could swear I had felt her holding back a little last night, even as she had beat and tore my body to pieces. Somehow, I felt that she was only doing this because she knew she could. So, the question remained, what was stopping her from killing me? What was Sen Boulibashi? What was her agenda?

Maybe she was working for L, I thought. Then again, if she had been working for L, I would have been caught a long time ago.

_"Let me guess, the reason you'd decided to approach me like this was because I'd killed someone you dearly loved too? Like I did with Naomi Misora? If I'd never killed him or her, you'd probably never come after me in the first place, now would you?"_

That fact was easy enough to figure out. Sen had turned out to be one of those people who wore their hearts on their sleeves. She didn't seem like the selfless type, however, but she did appear to have heart enough that she would do whatever it cost to protect the ones she cared about. She was also vengeful, and would make sure that anyone who did evil deeds got what was coming to them.

Thinking like this, I could almost believe that Sen was just like me. Our positions were just reversed, as all. Which, of course, made me wonder, vaguely, why she decided to come after me, because I definitely wasn't the evil one here.

Perhaps the answer lay in the confusion that I'd uncovered from her; way before that self-righteous lecture she gave me about the Death Note. I could see it in her eyes, the battle that she was fighting with herself. In the end though, she stuck with what she believed was right. But, unfortunately for her, what she thought was "right" . . . was wrong.

I stared out my window, my brain never registering the scene that lay in front of me.

She was dangerous, I knew. The greatest threat I would ever face, next to L. The way things stood, however, she could either be my worst enemy, or my greatest asset. Given a little subtle prodding, perhaps I could win her over to my side. With her powers, I could only imagine the good that we could do with this world! I just needed to find a few more fatal chinks in that armor of hers . . .

On the other hand, in the case that I couldn't draw her over to my side . . . well, it would really be like fighting against God himself . . . or herself, as it was.

I smiled to myself.

I'd said it before, didn't I? I would be the God of the new world, created by my own hands. I would defeat L, and take his place. I would defeat Sen, make her into my personal weapon, or send her back to wherever she came from . . . or kill her, if it were possible. Then, once everything was said and done, I would truly become God!

I looked over to my left, where Ryuk was lying on his right side, resting his cheek in his palm, waiting for me to announce our new course of action.

I looked back towards the window. The time it would take for me to gather more information from her, and afterwards the time when I would pick a fight with her was indiscernible at the moment. For now, I all I had to go on was that the fact that with her, I would have to assume that anything was possible. After all, she'd already invaded my head, my dreams and my home.

Right now, all I could do was wait and see.

I looked at my watch. 6:45 AM. If I hurried, I could probably clean up all this mess before Sayu and Mom woke up. Just how to hide the scars . . .?

* * *

_"It's not a sense of justice. Figuring out difficult cases is my hobby. If you measured good and evil by current laws, I would be responsible for many crimes. The same way you all like to solve mysteries and riddles, or clear video games more quickly . . . for me too, it's simply prolonging something that I enjoy doing. That's why I only take on cases that pique my interest. It's not justice at all. If it means being able to clear a case, I don't play fair. I'm a dishonest, cheating human being who hates losing . . ."_

L L******(XP) (_Death Note; Oneshot_)

* * *

_"I am . . . Justice!"_

L in unison with Light (_Death Note; Chapter Two: L_)

* * *

**Interlude III: L's Perspective**

Being an intellectually gifted detective, it was not often that I would find myself in shock of something. Until the day I had met Senyaita Boulibashi, I had held the belief that I could predict at least 99% of the things that went on in the world that I lived in. People were predictable. _Life_ was predictable. Everything that occurs on one day or another happens for a reason, and will sometimes follow a distinct pattern, which could always be easily discerned if you knew where to look.

As for the remaining 1%, most of it was comprised of those experiences which I wasn't able to partake in due to my vocation. Making friends with random strangers, for example. Falling in love with some random woman . . . but it never really mattered. I had Watari, my guardian, closest friend, and father-figure. As long as I had him, I didn't need anything else. But I digress.

Senyaita had thrown me for a loop the day she arrived into my life. I can still remember the surprise I had felt when I discovered a lone woman had somehow gotten past all of my defenses without setting off a single alarm. What's more, she had claimed to have done it all through the use of _magic_ . . . and when she imparted to me her dire predictions for my future, I was pushed even further off-kilter. For a few wild moments I had felt myself rapidly losing control of the few things in my life which I felt I had within my ability to control.

For the first time in my life, I was actually afraid. Not so much of the thought that I would be killed sometime in the near future. I'd suspected a long time ago that that would be my fate, whether it were by the hands of a stranger, or my own. It wasn't because I believed my future killer had an advantage over me that I didn't possess, either. After all we are all given certain advantages in life, but how powerful they are isn't what's important, it's how we use them.

No, I believe my fear had been derived from that of the unknown. If magic indeed existed, I would be forced to reevaluate everything I had once believed in. The world as I had previously known it would be shattered, and I would have to repair it from scratch. For once, I'd be faced with questions that had answers that I would never be able to reach.

I not usually one who's inclined to thinking like this. Not once in my life have I ever believed in magic. I had never believed that there was anything in this universe that couldn't be observed, studied, and proven by human beings.

I was alive . . . but for how long, I didn't know. But when I died, L Lawliet would be no more. Perhaps, with time, I would be forgotten too, no matter what great things I've accomplished. There was no way to tell for sure. So, in the end, I decided to just do what my heart desired, which ended up putting me on the path of a detective.

As a detective, and with much study and practice, I have been able to read people's intentions very well, and I was always able to tell when they were putting up a front, no matter how well they acted. Thus came the first spark for my initial fear (which, thankfully, I was able to hide) and distrust (which I didn't bother to hide at all) of Senyaita Boulibashi. She was completely honest with me, and was even able to "prove" to me that she was telling me the truth.

Despite this, I never believed her claims about "magic", "the Big Man Upstairs" or "the Cosmic Balance", as she put it. Not for a moment. The instant I was able to stamp out my rattled emotions, I immediately pronounced Sen as a delusional woman, most possibly dangerous; and thought that perhaps she herself could be the prophesied villain who would end up taking my life, and I looked for traces of any hidden genius intelligence. When she pulled some of her little parlor tricks (as she would be prone to do for the better part of two years), I quickly assumed her to be a delusional illusionist. It was the first time I had ever done so, this act of allowing myself to take on some petty belief that I would never bother to prove. It was the first time I had ever felt such anxiety . . .

Sen had told me once that she had to be careful with the way she used her powers, lest she should make a vital mistake and disrupt the balance of "this" universe, potentially setting it down a path of destruction. Yet she had already done so with a single act. Just by being here she disrupted the "balance", just with her very existence this woman had destroyed any semblance of control that I had ever believed myself to have, and forced me behind walls that I had never needed nor wanted before, and I hated it.

For a long time I couldn't bring myself to trust her. I had completely convinced myself that Sen, that reckless, overly emotional and erratic woman, was a liar. I watched her every day, never believing in her self-proclaimed desires to protect me from this as of yet unknown killer who would be out to take my life like so many others before him.I watched her, waiting for the moment when her "mask" would slip, and at the same time I searched for weaknesses I could exploit, so I could have her condemned and sent off to jail . . . or an asylum.

Eventually, however, I had to let the idea go. After living with her for three months, day by day it became increasingly obvious that Senyaita Boulibashi was nothing more than a girl with exceptional abilities and a foresight that could be detrimental to my survival. Taking this into account, I realized that maintaining the idea of her threatening my person for much longer would be stupid. So, I let her stay.

Sen had certainly turned out to be an interesting companion. I saw that she was the kind of person who liked to think a lot, sometimes to the point of overdoing it. I would watch as, every other hour, when left to her own devices, her expression would change from happy, to sad, to excited, to angry. Most often though, she was passive, often choosing to either stare out a window, up at a ceiling or into some other form of space with an absent look in her eyes. Sometimes, when she would draw herself out of this deep reflection, she would strike up a conversation with me, talking as if we were old friends, even when most of the time I didn't participate.

I had always found it rather odd how she would always pursue my hand in friendship. How she would spend every minute of the day with me, now and again asking me about my interests, what I liked to do when I wasn't solving cases, and sometimes asking me if there were was any place that I hadn't been where I would like to go. Although I would hardly ever answer her questions outright, never believing them to be of any importance, she was never once discouraged.

On several occasions, she had opted to give me presents, like on my last birthday she had baked a chocolate cake for me, with orange and black icing, with my insignia on top made out of hard candy for decoration. She had given me a chess set that day, saying that she would like to play a few games with me, "if it was alright". I acquiesced, humoring her with a quick game every now and again.

I actually found it rather interesting to watch her play, her brow furrowing as she furiously tried to think of a way to outsmart me. She would yank at her hair and occasionally growl in frustration, and at other times she would start rubbing her temples in an attempt to calm down, or to soothe a throbbing headache. No matter what she did, though, she would end up losing every time, and every time she did, she would smile at me.

I asked her once, if she really possessed such great power, why didn't she use them to beat me, if winning was so important to her?

"Because, that would be cheating." she answered, smiling.

"Does it really matter how you play the game, so long as you win?" I asked, thinking about the previous cases I had solved.

She shrugged.

"It's not much fun if you already know what's going to happen ahead of time. Where's the challenge?"

I actually smiled a little, biting on my thumbnail as I answered coyly "Speak for yourself, Sen. Perhaps you should look into that a bit more before you make assumptions."

She blinked once, surprised at the rare display of emotion I had shown her. Then she grinned at me, pleased.

She was a bit of a paradox, that woman. She had the ability to draw people to her, yet repel them with a single glance. She was my guardian, and self-proclaimed "friend", and yet she posed the greatest threat to me.

On some days she would go through episodes where she just couldn't stay still, and leave our living steads of the moment to look for some "fun". When she couldn't find any, she made up her own. Her recent exploits have included hot-wiring a motorcycle, causing five different bar riots, and getting herself involved in a police chase that sometimes would span state-wide.

On other days Sen would go through episodes where she couldn't be bothered to move. I remember one day when she, as was her usual habit, clung on to me in an overbearing embrace, and didn't let go for twelve hours straight. I was very uncomfortable with this, and a little annoyed. I had freedom enough to move around and get some work done still, but I simply wasn't used to somebody taking away my personal space, especially one who knew exactly what she was doing and how her actions made me feel.

I was only relinquished from her vice grip when I would tell her that I needed to go to the bathroom, and after that, I had to wait until she fell asleep before I could pry her off me.

Sen, as I understood her, was usually one thing, the other, or both. She had no pattern, no logic, she just . . . _was_. Sometimes, I couldn't help but wonder, just what was she, really? Was she really telling the truth? If she was, what would I do then?

Out of self-preservation, I never let myself think about that for long.

Eventually, as time wore on, I grew used to her company, her personality. Now and again she would tell me things about herself, which helped me see her in a clearer perspective. I could never ask her outright to tell me more than what she allotted. Every time I tried, she would always give me some form of excuse, things like "Not until you trust me" and "Not until you like me". Which made sense, I suppose. Being "friends" our relationship was supposed to be all about give-and-take.

But. I'm 100% sure that our "friendship", if that was indeed our relation, wasn't going to be like most friends.

I was also 100% sure that she knew that as well.

* * *

**Vision 30: Too Many Thoughts in My Head**

I flew home from my little play date with Light, emotionally disturbed. I'd more or less thrown him to the wolves and left him to rot . . . although, not for forever.

I pulled open a window that led into my bedroom, and let myself in. I took off the cape, the mask, and the gloves and threw them onto the bed. As I made my way over to the bathroom, I pulled off the boots off my feet and threw them over my shoulder, not caring where they landed. I then reached into my pocket, pulled out a hairband, and tied my hair back.

I turned on the bathroom lights, and went over to the sink to wash off the face paint.

Until I had encountered the Death Note saga, I had never given much thought to whether or not it was okay to kill someone, even if they were bad. As I had understood it, being a young child, the way it went was: Bad guys went to jail and the monsters were killed by the good guys. It was still wrong to kill people though, only bad guys killed people. Was it okay if the bad guy died? Of course, the world was a better place because of that.

Yet, now, or at least upon reading that story, I hesitated. By killing those who had wronged us, were we as every bit a monster as they were? If a criminal should die, either by self-destruction or a complete accident, was it still okay? Shouldn't the loss of their life be mourned every bit as much as Michael Jackson's? Or was their only worth based in the things that they did in life? Were there truly worthless people out there?

I didn't believe that personally. I believed that we all had a hand to play in somebody else's fate, that is, whether it's with a single glance from a stranger, or a close relationship with a friend . . . we, all of us, affected each other's destiny. Based on this, there should be no such thing as a truly worthless person, and yes, every life lost should be mourned, no matter how terrible they were . . .

Easier said than done though. I can't imagine anybody being able to mourn the death of the man who had killed their parents. If they could, though, then damn, they must be a pretty strong person to be able to overcome that kind of resentment . . . or a saint.

I finished washing my face and propped myself up against the sink as I stared at my face in the mirror, little droplets of water sliding down my skin.

Light had been right back there, I did meet somebody whom I hated with every fiber of my being. I wanted to kill him, I desperately wanted to kill him, I_ needed_ to kill him. But I didn't. And the aftermath? I can't remember, I must have erased that bit of memory from my mind, but I knew it involved the destruction of a planet.

So now I was terrorizing him, because I viewed him as a psychopathic dictator bent on taking over the world. I never doubted that one for a minute. I also never doubted that he had good intentions at heart, however flawed they were. You know what they say about the Road to Hell.

I moved away from the sink, and pulled a hairbrush out of the bathroom cabinet. I yanked the knots and tangles out of my hair, walking out of the bathroom while singing a little song that had been on my mind for quite awhile.

_"Whatever happened to fair dealing?_

_"And pure ethics?_

_"And nice manners?_

_"Why is it everyone now . . . is a pain in the ass!_

_"Whatever happened to class?_

_"Class . . ."_

I don't know why, but I was feeling rather ironic.

What was I getting so worked up over, anyway? Yes, lives were being saved, but a bigger threat was on the rise, and his name was Kira. He was a man who would do whatever it took to get what he wanted, no matter what it was. As long as his actions added up to a "greater good" it didn't matter to him. That was one of the reasons I was here in the first place!

_"Class . . ._

_"Whatever happened to "Please, may I?", and "Yes, thank you", and "How Charming?"_

_"Now every son of a bitch . . ._

_"Is a snake in the grass!_

_"Whatever happened to class?_

_"Class . . ."_

It bothered me, though. There would be people who worshiped Kira as a hero, who quite literally would sing his praises for all the good they had done for them. But the fact was, good or bad, it was still murder wasn't it?

I've told you before that I'm a vagabond vigilante. Well, there was a part of my life where I had spent my time looking for monsters to fight. I would seek them up, hunt them down, and kill them . . . and I enjoyed it. A lot. It had become a bit of a hobby of mine, my favorites being those who could actually hold their ground against me and my least favorites being the ones who just wouldn't stay dead. Ugh, I swear, Zombies are one of the most annoying things in the world. Good for target practice, but not much else. Buuuut they just_ keep coming back!_

Eventually, I had stopped this game of Search and Destroy. Partly because I was tired of killing, and partly because . . . I felt a little guilty. Those creatures I had met that were actually capable of emotion . . . so many of them had held such fear in their eyes right before I killed them.

_"Oh, there ain't no gentlemen to open up the doors . . ._

_"There ain't no ladies now, there's only pigs . . . and whores!_

_"And even kids will knock you down so's they can pass!_

_"Nobody's got no class!"_

I vaguely wondered what would become of the Kira worshipers of the world. Would they suffer depression? Hopelessness? No, I'm thinking too far ahead right now, but . . . it didn't matter. None of it did. I had already promised myself a long time ago that I would never kill again. Which could beg the question "For how long?", but then I could I just as easily argue "For Forever." Then again, I'm only human.

_"Whatever happened to old values?_

_"And fine morals?_

_"And good breeding?_

_"Now no one even says "Oops!" When they're passin' their gas!_

_"Whatever happened to class?_

_"Class . . ."_

And not only am I human, I'm selfish as well. Truth be told, I knew that the only reason I was here was because of L. Yes, I wanted to stop Kira, yes I wanted to make sure no more damage was done than what has already occurred, but . . . at heart, all I really cared about was L's safety. As much as I could pretend to otherwise, I didn't care about the rest of the world. Just L.

Wow, single minded_ and_ selfish! No wonder L doesn't like me.

I put down the brush and paced the length of my room.

_"Oh, there ain't no gentleman who's fit for any use!_

_"And any girl will touch your privates for a deuce!_

_"And even kids'll kick your shins and give ya sass!_

_"(And even kids'll kick your shins and give ya sass!)_

_"Nobody's got no class!"_

**And **I was in a mood! I sighed, and reached under my bed for my icebox, where I kept some of my soda stash. I sat on the bed, popped the top of the can, and took a deep gulp. God, sometimes_ **I** _wondered what was with me sometimes!

I sighed.

Anyway, aside from that . . .

I knew I was living a dream when I first got my powers. Sometimes it was a nightmare, sometimes it wasn't. Either way, it was an absolute dream. But it didn't matter. I mean, okay, so I have superpowers, but so what? Just what exactly did I have to put on the table? I've been hanging out with L for two years now, and I haven't gotten any closer to him on a personal level than the day I'd met him.

He didn't trust me. I knew that he didn't, and I knew that he wouldn't. I knew. And I was fine with it, I mean, it's not like I haven't faced distrust before in my life, although . . . I suppose if you really like someone (platonic or otherwise) and you want them to like you back, at some point the lack of faith begins to wear on you for awhile. It was depressing, actually.

Plus, it wasn't like I didn't know how many people wanted to get their hands on L without malicious intentions. So, I wondered what set me apart from the rest of them? Was I really just another tally-mark on the wall of L-lovers? How many would I have to fight before I got to the boss (L)?

_"All you read about today is _rape!_ And _theft!

"JESUS _Christ_!

_"Ain't there no decency left?_

_"Nobody's got no class!"_

I frowned into my drink, and put it on the bedside table.

_"Every guy is a snot!"_

I stared at the can. I was worrying too much, I knew it. Debates about right and wrong often did that to me.

_"Every girl is a twat!"_

The reality was, I came here for only one reason: Saving L's ass. There was no shame in that. Although, saving people just for the sake of assuaging my guilty conscience might be called into question. But hell, they're alive, and a good chunk of them would be serving the rest of their sentences . . . including life sentences . . .

Who cares?

_"Holy shit!_

_"(Holy shit!)"_

I'm a super-powered humanoid, who's probably at least over a thousand years old. During all that time, though, I haven't aged much. Literally and figuratively.

I guess I'm still a little immature.

_"What a shame!_

_"(What a shame!)"_

Whatever. I'm here. L was going to live, and I was going to enjoy every second I had with him. Light and the rest of the world could kiss my ass.

_"What became . . . of class?"_

I looked behind me. There was a pale light shining through my window, coexisting with city lights down below and around.

The moon . . . I needed to see the moon.

I turned my gaze up to the ceiling, and willed myself upwards through several layers of concrete and brick. When I arrived onto the ceiling, I promptly sat down andwrapped my arms around my knees. I stared upwards into the vast heavens, paying the most attention to the great shining pearl in the sky.

I spent several hours like that, alone, calm, a little melancholy, but peaceful . . . before I fell asleep.

* * *

_"I'm sorry sir, but I was wondering what you wanted to do with your gun collection? You keep moving it and I keep tripping over it."_

_"Sorry Alfred, I suppose I should take it to the police."_

_"It's a bagful of tragedy, that's what it is. I don't know how you could even handle them."_

_"You have to know your enemy, Alfred. I'd never use one, but even I can appreciate the attraction of a gun:_

_"The heft . . . the sleekness . . . the cool steel . . . the precision . . . and the _power_._

_"The power to change lives, history . . ._

_"The Power of God."_

Alfred Pennyworth and Bruce Wayne _(**Batman: Gotham Knight; Story - Deadshot**)_

* * *

**A/N - Like? Don't like? Needs help? Let me know.**

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Enter Sandman - Metallica**

**Chikane's Theme - Kannazuki no Miko Soundtrack**

**Agony - KOTOKO, also: Kannazuki no Miko Soundtrack**

**Re-Sublimity - KOTOKO, also: Kannazuki no Miko Soundtrack**

**Class - Chicago Soundtrack**


	14. Shh! I'm Awake!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

_"Let me get this straight:_

_You can invent TANKS . . ._

_JET SKIS . . ._

_and a GIGANTIC __**FRIGGIN' **_**DRILL**! _. . ._

_But the concept of a Hot Air Balloon . . . ELUUUUUUUDES you!"_

_"Um . . . yes!"_

_"I hate this world and everyone in it."_

Sokka and the Mechanist

_(**GanXingba's Avatar The Last Airbender Abridged**_, Episode 10)

* * *

**Vision 31: An Uncomfortable Subject**

When I opened my eyes, it was early afternoon of the next day, probably sometime around 3 or 5 o'clock. I stared out at my surroundings, lying unmoving on the ground. Buildings all around me, around this hotel, and above, the cloudy skies of Kanto, Japan. I heard a few birds calling in the distance, as well as the sound of cars driving by, along with all the other noises of the big city. For a long and rare moment, as I lay there on the roof. I didn't think. I just absorbed. I felt the chill wind blowing at my face, my body, through my hair and clothes.

Finally, I thought _'I'm alive . . . it feels good to be alive.'_

I was lying on my side, my head propped on one arm so as to use it as a sort of pillow. When my brain finally woke up, I rolled over onto my back, my arms splayed out from side to side. I stared up into the sky, admiring the bits and pieces of bluish color that peaked out from behind the clouds for a little bit.

Then, I frowned, thinking about the matter of Light Yagami and the night before.

I closed my eyes, and sat up, drawing one knee up to my chest and propping one arm on it.

_'I've changed things' _I thought._ 'I don't know how much or how little, but . . . I have.' _When I had come here, I originally thought that the most I would be doing was saving L from the clutches of Death. I had believed that nothing essentially would change. Everybody would do their own little ditty, and I would get to have front row seats to all the action, spouting off witty and sarcastic comments here and there while I spent the rest of the time laughing my head off.

Realistically speaking, however, that was impossible. While one can certainly imagine themselves living out a scene with some of their favorite characters on film, or in novelizations, or in video games, the chances of the actual event occurring were often very slim. Now that I've revealed myself to Light Yagami, it's likely that he'll be strengthening his guard, on top of keeping up with the "Innocent-Little-Boy" scheme, and continuing his Kira campaign. Not to mention he'll be setting up traps for me as well, trying to trick me into working for him, whether I knew it consciously or not. Who knows, maybe he'll try to come up with a plan where he could knock both me and L out at the same time, though at present I can't imagine how the hell he could go about doing that . . .

If I wasn't careful, I could end up putting L into more danger than he would have been at this point in time, were I not present. Maybe Light will try killing a few hundred people in order to get to me, or . . .

Now that I thought about it, there wasn't much Light could do about my case. He couldn't kill me, though he would probably try . . . He couldn't threaten me with lives, seeming as how I could nullify the Death Note's effects and carry the villains and innocent bystanders off somewhere else. Speaking of which, I need to keep an eye out for Misa Amane . . . hm, okay, we're in January right now, Misa doesn't get her Death Note until March 20 . . .

At present, the only thing Light could possibly do was kill L. He was the only one I could not save. Those were the rules: Don't steal the spotlight, and don't try to save L, he needs to do this on his own. Well . . . I obviously would not let that happen . . . . but then again, it wouldn't be the first time I failed my own expectations, if I were unable to save him . . .

I closed my eyes again. I would have to pay Light another visit later today, make sure certain events didn't veer too far off course.

I opened my eyes, feeling isolated from the world. Godlike, yet not. Powerful, yet weak. Yup, that was me alright. I could do anything I wanted, but I refrained from doing so because I wanted to feel at least a_ little bit _human. I wanted to know pain, so I allowed myself to be able to feel, bleed, and break. I wanted to know happiness, so I would deprive myself of certain things so I could enjoy others later. I wanted to know loss, so I refrained from cheating, I avoided the "Divine Intervention/Look-at-me-I'm-Bruce-Almighty" card, and just let things happen.

I'm not a genius; clearly. My mind is full with information that I've gathered from traveling in between alternate universes, but I, by all means, did not know everything. Out of the hundreds of languages in existence, I was only fluent in about ten of them. I was a self-proclaimed scholar of fantasy and the macabre, but I only knew the basics of subjects such as chemistry and astronomy.

Everyday, I stood on the fine line between humanity and whatever the hell the Good Lord intended me to be when he gave me these powers. My whole life, a balancing act: Good or Bad, do or don't, be or don't be . . . noodles, don't noodles . . .

I can't tell you how annoying this was . . . or how much I hated it sometimes.

On a less somber note, there was something on my mind that had been nagging at me ever since I'd left Light's place, something that I'd never addressed until now: The fact that I couldn't understand how he could have realized that I was there on a personal vendetta, when he and I had never exchanged a word since I got here! I couldn't understand how he could read into my personality so quickly and go on to treat me like a child.

Thinking about it, I'd first chalked it up to him being an intellectual genius, and assumed that he was just _that good _. . . but it didn't fit. Something was missing. Maybe that's my pride talking, but, like I said, I'm not cut out for law enforcement so, right now I'm giving you all permission to just assume that my ability to read people is not that great . . . at least I don't think so. Anyway, I took myself back to the dream, and tried to analyze every word that was exchanged between us to see what on earth had I given away and how did I do it?

Which reminds me, how in the hell could someone go from getting beaten repeatedly within an inch of their lives, to "Okay, are we done yet"? The guy has nerves of steel, I'll give him that much, I mean, he had to have something in order to stomach the knowledge that he was killing people every day and people wanted him in prison for it . . . which would eventually lead to his death . . .

Had he felt my rage? Yeah, yeah he did. I don't think I've made a secret of it, do you? But it amazed me . . . I mean for all he knew, I could be punishing him for the lives that he took on the sole principle that all life is sacred! I could have been an emissary from the future here to off his ass because he and his stupid Death Note had caused Armageddon! But no, the words that had come out of his mouth were "Let me guess, I'd killed someone you dearly loved too?"

. . . Maybe I reading too much into it. I mean, think about what has happened already! For five days he used the Death Note, in the name of "justice" he says, fully prepared to be killed, or have his soul stolen or whatever. After that he had dozens of policemen and criminal investigators hounding his ass trying to arrest him for his way of "justice". Right now he's pitted up against the best detective in the world, and if he slips up just the slightest bit he is dead! Literally! Dead! Half the stuff that he's done until was in self-defense! Knowing that, hell, he could have just been making stuff up and throwing them out there just to see how I would react, so he could study me, so he could trap me . . . oh that'd be just like him!

On the other hand . . . what if, while I was in the dream . . . my mind actually brushed against his? Enough so that he got a read on my personality without realizing it? It'd make sense since, after all, my powers were pretty much unstable. Fact is, I don't know what the limits to my powers are. I mean, look at the description! Powers: Everything. That's a pretty vague term if ever I saw one. So, basically, anything can happen around me, even if I don't want them to!

I closed my eyes, and took a deep breath. When I opened my eyes, I found myself lying back down at the ground, staring at the sky. I sighed, and turned my head to the side, gritting my teeth. Damn it, I was panicking, I hate it when I start panicking! . . . Damn it, I couldn't freak out like this, no! I needed to keep things under control before I made things worse than they actually were!

Alright . . . alright, okay . . . so, I'm going to pay Light a visit today. To see how much he has on me. If he has nothing, then I can just go on toying with him. If he does . . . well, I'll figure something out. Meanwhile I can just keep on toying with him.

Light's pissed off face . . . hmmm, what'll_ that_ be like? Heheh.

I let out a breath, my mind changing gears again. I'd have to be careful though. I'd have to make sure that him actually_ knowing _me was the only problem, make sure that I didn't somehow give him the blueprints to L's demise . . . okay, now I was being overly paranoid. But, don't I have a right to be? Given my powers, the Butterfly Effect, and my own immaturity, I had no idea where this was going to go! I just wanted things to stay relatively the same . . . except for the part where L lives and Light sits on his sorry bum in the hooscow for the rest of his life, of course!

But . . . how much fun would that be?

. . . Ugh, fuck that, I wasn't about to go all Billy and Mandy on this place and throw the whole universe into utter chaos! If I wanted fun, I knew how to get it.

I could ride a motorcycle! Set someone's house on fire! Blow up a car! Of course, I wouldn't actually hurt anybody, I mean, well . . .

Ugh!

I slapped my hands over my face, and rubbed my eyes a little. Look, Sen, there's no need to freak out. You've got a job to do, and you_ will _do it, damn it! Now show me your war face!

I sighed. Okay, everything was going to be okay so . . . watch the imagination running, okay? Okay . . .

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a wrapped package of sorts sitting somewhere off to my right.

I sat up. The package itself was large, and looked a tad lumpy. Wrapped in a green cloth with swirling lines of white for design, it sat in front of a steel-colored thermos.

Lunch?

I got on all fours and crawled over to the thing. I then raised one hand to untie the knot on top, and, once figuring out that I couldn't really open it that well with just one hand, I sat down Indian-style in front of the package and opened it. Inside was a microwaveable bowl full of chicken soup, along with some ham-tomato-and-lettuce sandwiches and a spoon.

I tilted my head to the side.

. . . Cool.

I looked over at the thermos in front of me and grabbed it. I unscrewed the top off and took a tentative sip.

A huge grin split my face in two.

SWEET! DIET DOCTOR PEPPER! MY FAVORITE! I could never get tired of this stuff!

I took three huge gulps (Aah! Refreshing!), and then wiped my mouth off on the end of my sleeve. **_Yummay!_ **Afterwards, I finally noticed a small slip of paper nestled beneath the bowl of soup. I put down the thermos and grabbed the note. This is what it said.

Dear Miss Boulibashi,

I hope you slept well. Last night, at around three o'clock, Watari found you asleep on our roof. Worried about your welfare, he attempted to bring you back downstairs to your rooms. He failed. It seems, no matter how hard he tried he simply could not pick you up from the ground. "It was like she was glued there" He says. So, I told him to leave you alone and to bring up lunch for when you got hungry later. Enjoy.

Sincerely, **L**

Sweet, right? . . . yeah . . . not really.

Here's the_ rest _of the note.

P. S. I have taken the liberty of providing a healthy meal for you. A growing girl needs her strength Sen, and you won't get it from eating like me. Unlike you, I have an extremely high metabolism and therefore must have a high calorie diet. You, on the other hand, are not so lucky. Eventually, your bad habits will show through your physical body, whether you like it or not. If you like, I can have Watari cook all your meals for you. That way, you will grow up happy, healthy, and pretty . . .

And nyeh, nyeh, nyeh . . .

Did he just say I was fat? Why yes, yes I believe he did.

Did he just say I needed to lose weight? Yup! Yuppity, yup, yuppers!

Did he just make a crack at me? Why, I think he did!

. . .

_. . . WELL IT'S NOT MY FAULT YOU'RE MADE OUT OF FREAKING TWIGS AND STRING, L! UGGH!_

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Russians – Sting**

**City is at War – Cobra Starship**

**So Cold – Breaking Benjamin**

**Anyway You Want It – Journey**

**Livin' la Vida Loca - Ricky Martin**


	15. Dinner and a Brawl, or is it Lunch?

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

_"My name is Dexter. Dexter Morgan. I don't know what made me the way I am, but, whatever it was, left a hollow place inside. People fake a lot of human interactions, but I feel like I've faked them all, and I fake them very well."_

_". . . And that's my burden, I guess."_

Dexter Morgan (_Dexter; _Season 1, Episode 1: **Dexter**)

* * *

_"I dream . . ._

_". . . I dream I'm floating on the surface of my own life . . . watching it unfold . . . observing it . . . I'm the outsider looking in."_

_"Look at them . . . they can laugh and play, it comes so easily for them . . ._

_" . . . Even though I'm not one of them . . . even though, sometimes, I can really be a monster . . . today, I'm just . . . a sea monster."_

Dexter Morgan (_Dexter; _Season 1, Episode 2: **Crocodile**)

* * *

_"Harry taught me that Death isn't the end: it's the beginning of a chain reaction that'll catch you if you're not careful._

_"He taught me that none of us are who we appear to be on the outside . . . but we must maintain appearances to survive . . ._

_"But there was something Harry didn't teach me . . . something he didn't know, couldn't possibly know . . ._

_"The willful taking of life represents the ultimate disconnect from humanity . . . it leaves you an outsider, forever looking in, searching for company to keep."_

Dexter Morgan (_Dexter; _Season 1, Episode 3: **Popping Cherry**)

* * *

**Vision 32: You Don't Know Me . . . So Why Do You Act Like You Do?**

Light and Sayu Yagami were walking down the street with their mother. Light watched with a tender look as his sister skipped excitedly down the street while their mother read aloud a list from a sheet of paper that she held in her hand. She wore a pink, button-up top, with a white shirt underneath, and a brown skirt. A beige purse hung on her elbow from its' straps.

". . . and that should be just about all of it." She finished, smiling warmly at her daughter.

"That's great Mom!" Sayu exclaimed.

I glanced over at the two kids, though I suppose it's a little strange to call them that, since Light and I are _technically _around the same age. They were both dressed casually, not that you could expect much else if they were just walking to the freaking _store_.

I leaned back in my chair, balancing it on it's hind legs whilst propping my legs up on the table in front of me. My left arm dangled over the back of the chair, while, in my right hand, I held a glass of iced Dr. Pepper to my lips. I bit on the straw as I took in a draft, an old habit of mine that I had fallen back into recently. Right now I was sitting in the roofed patio of this random cafe that I'd found while trying to think of the best way to surprise Light-kun. It was pretty nice, the interior decorating was amazing, and hell, it even had actual waiters and waitresses, all decked out in black and white!

I grinned slyly as I watched them move ever closer to the cafe. This should be good . . . maybe. I really ought to be a bit more serious about this whole situation, all things considered, but I couldn't stop myself from imagining what Light's face would look like when he saw me! Heehee!

. . . .

God, am I bipolar?

I put my glass down and pulled my ipod out of my jacket. I stuck in my earphones and started pouring through my list of songs until I found the one I wanted:

_Enter Sandman by Metallica_

. . . Awesome song!

I grinned, and pushed the play button on my little love machine. I spoke softly to myself along with the song

_"And now I lay me down to sleep_

_"(Now I lay me down to sleep)_

_"Pray the lord my soul to keep,_

_"(Pray the lord my soul to keep,)_

_"If I die before I wake,_

_"(If I die before I wake,)_

_"Pray the lord, my soul to take_

_"(Pray the lord, my soul to take)"_

I threw my head back and sang, shaking my head

_"Hush little baby, don't say a word!_

_"And never mind that noise you heard_

_"It's just the beast under your bed . . ._

_"In your closet, in your heeeaaaaad!"_

I threw my fists into the air, banging my head

_"Exiiiit Light!_

_"Ennnteeer niiight!_

_"Graaaain of saaaand!"_

I grabbed an imaginary grain of sand out of the air between my fingertips, and held it up close to my face for inspection before I threw my arms back up into the air again and started banging.

_"Exit Light!_

_"Enter niiiiight!_

_"Take my hand . . ."_

I threw my arm out in Light's direction, as if I actually were inviting him to take my hand. I looked at him. He was standing stock still on the sidewalk, his expression showing nothing but pure shock. Mrs. Yagami and Sayu, who had walked ahead of him, glanced back quizzically. I grinned. I guess if he were a lesser man, he would have shit his pants already. But no, Light Yagami is not _that_ easy, sadly.

I turned my gaze away from him and finished, my arms open wide and shaking my head back and forth from side to side

_"We're off to Never Never Land!"_

I threw my legs off the table and swiped a set of silverware from one of the placemats.

"Yea-hehheh!" I laughed darkly, before I struck a spoon sharply on the edge of the table.

"OH!" I drummed on whatever surface was immediately in front of me: The table itself, the placemat, the candlestick holder, the wineglass, which may have been for decoration . . .

_"Yeah! Yeeaaaaah!"_

_*crack*_

. . . but would have to be replaced, because I just broke it!

"Coming Light?" I heard Sayu ask.

"Uh, yeah . . just give me a second." I heard Light's voice as he tried to collect himself.

I paused in my drumming and looked over at him.

"Oh hey, Light, baby!" I called out waving my hand.

Dammit! Didn't flinch, but his gaze did turn steely as he watched me, warily. Nope, instead he just sort of went all _still . . ._

I pulled my headphones out of my ears and pressed pause on my ipod.

"Light, you know this girl?" Mrs. Yagami asked.

"Oh, he's my boyfriend!" I said, getting up from my seat and propping myself on the low fence surrounding the restaurant, laughing. "So how are you, good lookin'?" I winked at him, grinning.

"She's joking!" Light responded quickly, lifting his hands up in defense, while his mom and sister stared at him with wide eyes. "She's just a girl I'm tutoring in Math, we met a couple of weeks ago, said her exams were coming up and that she really needed help . . ."

"Aw, Lighty-poo! You don't need to be embar-wessed!" I cooed, deciding to cut him some slack and pinch his cheek like a little child. "It's okay to have a girlfriend, it's okaaay!"

"Cut it out!" He snapped, slapping my hand away.

Sayu gasped.

"Hey, aren't you Sen Boulibashi?" she asked excitedly.

"No, I'm not Sen Bully-whatsy." I responded, smiling good-naturedly at her.

"Oh my god! Oh my god!" She said, covering her mouth in her excitement. "I can't believe you're here! I mean, what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be doing a show right now . . .?"

"Shh!" I said, raising a finger to my lips. "Try to keep it on the down low, kid, I'm trying to maintain a low profile."

"But . . . but, this is so amazing! I never expected to see an actual star here . . . wait a minute, Light, Sen doesn't go to school!"

"Well, technically, I do" I said, shrugging. Pull out your boots, people, here comes the bullcrap. "I just do all my work at home instead of actually going. Unfortunately, however, I haven't been doing so well in math and science, so my teachers are having me retake a few tests."

"Oh God, do I know how you feel!" Sayu gushed, "Math and science are like, my worst subjects ever! I can barely understand anything in those classes!"

"Uh, Sayu, why don't you go on ahead with Mom? It looks like Sen has some stuff that she wants to discuss with me." Light said.

"Awww, but Light! This is like a once-in-a-lifetime chance!" Sayu pouted. She turned to me. "Oh, which reminds me, could you sign my . . ."

"Now, Sayu, that's enough." The mom said sternly, "You can talk to this girl later. If she's Light's friend, I'm sure you'll see her again real soon. In the meanwhile we have to make sure that we get home and have dinner ready by eight!"

"Aw, Moooom!"

"No buts! Let's go!"

I waved my hand sheepishly at her as the two looked back. Sayu smiled and waved back before turning away.

"Sweet kid." I said.

Once they were out of hearing range, I looked back at Light, and grinned evilly at him.

"Miss me, bitch?" I asked.

"What are you doing?" He asked me, curtly.

Ahhhh, I loved that face! So harsh, so cold, so dark, so _mean! _This, my friends, is the true face of Light Yagami.

I jabbed my thumb behind me. "Go and see the receptionist." I said, "You have a reservation under the name 'Gaylord Focker' . . . that's "Focker", with an "O"."

Light glared darkly at me. "And if I don't?" He asked.

"I'll make you!" I smiled, "And I'll make you skip and dance and sing "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" like a little girl while I'm at it!"

"I'd like to see you try." He retorted angrily.

"Would you?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He didn't respond, he just glowered at me for a few moments before stalking away towards the door.

I stared for awhile in the direction he'd left. And I thought this was going to be _so _bad! Well, we haven't even gotten to the serious stuff yet, so it's to be expected.

I grabbed my ipod and pressed play, grabbed my utensils, and continued from where I left off from my drum solo.

"Yooooooo!" I sang. "Take my hand! We're off to Never Never Land! Off to Never Never Land! Off to Never Never Laaaand!"

A young brunette, wearing a white dress shirt, a black bow-tie, and a black skirt, with shoulder-length hair that was tied up in a short braid, came up to my table, her hands clasped together.

"Excuse me miss, but you're disturbing the other customers." She spoke, politely.

Actually, to be more precise, I'd been disturbing _her _for the past three hours. The rest was just collateral damage. See, I'd found out that the waitress had a bit of a temper, which I found pretty entertaining, so I've been exploiting it with every chance I got, in every possible way I could think of, _off _of the _top of my __**head**__!_

For example:

"Fuck your mama!" I shot at her, still drumming away.

"What?" She exclaimed.

"Fuck your sister!" I said, circling the heads of my fork and spoon around each other in quick succession and pointing them in her direction.

_"Excuse _me?" She asked. Ah, finally! I was getting on her last nerve!

"FUCK YO' DADDY!" I yelled, throwing the silverware up in the air.

In the past, she had shown visible signs of irritation, but somehow, she had managed to hold on to her temper for the past three hours! I gotta give my props to this girl, she's good! Haha! . . . but alas, all things must come to an end.

"I . . . will _not_ be treated like this!"

"Fuck yo' Gram-maw!"

"Why you little . . .!" I saw her grit her teeth and clench her fists tightly at her sides.

"But most of all, fuck you!" I braced my left arm on the table, and pointed at her with a snarky grin on my face.

But I couldn't hold it for long.

"Pahahahahah!" I slammed my hand on my thigh. "Man, I've been waiting to use that line for **FOREVER**!" I laughed.

"Are you _high?"_ The waitress asked me incredulously.

"Honey, you _wish _I was high!" I laughed, and fell backwards into my seat.

"Urrrg! I'm calling the police if you don't get out of here, you little brat!" She spat angrily.

"Brat?" I said, aghast, laying a hand over my heart, "But Miss . . . I'm legal! I mean, I thank you kindly for the compliment, for surely, but next time you might wanna choose your words a bit more carefully!"

She growled, but otherwise didn't respond this time. She turned around and stomped away. I watched her, amused, as she shoved past a waiter who was balancing a full tray in one hand. She went to a door that was on the right side of a bar, and had a small sign that said _EMPLOYEES ONLY_; I watched her grab the handle and just about tear the sucker wide open before she let it slam behind her. The bartender glanced confusedly in the direction she had gone, then shrugged it off and continued cleaning out glasses with an old white rag.

I looked to my left and spotted Light standing a few feet away from our table with a stupefied look on his face and winked at him.

I grinned. "You see what I have to put up with?" I asked, jabbing my thumb at the door.

_"This, _is what you call keeping a low profile?" He asked skeptically.

"Ah, I wouldn't worry about it too much, half the people in here are scared of me anyway." I waved my hand dismissively at him as he walked towards me and pulled out a chair for himself. Ah, I wish I could talk to Ryuk, but I couldn't let him know that that was one of my abilities. Oh, the conversations we would have! . . .

Ooh! I wonder if I could bake him an apple pie! Maybe he'll like that? Hell, we all know how addicted Ryuk is to_regular _apples, lets see how he likes having a new spin on things!

I smiled to myself and took another sip of soda.

"So, how do you like your coffee, Light? Black?"

Like your soul?

"That's not necessary." Light said brusquely.

"Oh no, Light . . . I insist." I responded lowly, the Cheshire cat smile still playing around my face.

"Hey! Waiter!" I called at some random dude who was walking by our table. I pointed at the door where my, as of right now, favorite waitress had just stormed through. "Tell the Firey Venus in there to bring my friend a cup of black coffee, will you? And uh . . . hm . . . Light, would you like anything else? A piece of cake? Some sugar? Cream?"

The mask was back on his face again. He played the part of the innocent awkward teenager being dragged along into the ride of his life as he spoke "Er, well . . ."

I cut across him. "Of course you don't want anything, just the coffee please!" I spoke quickly. "And gimme a reload on _my_ drink while you're in there, 'kay? I need something to tide me over for the walk home!"

"Y-yes, miss" He drew out the 'yes' because he was a little unsettled at having to deal with the rowdy customer of the day. That wasn't a stutter. Otherwise, he remained detached and impersonal, not wanting to get involved with whatever the hell was going on in this establishment.

Thank you, sir! I think I'll leave you and the pretty lady a hefty tip before I leave!

Once he left, the both of us stayed quiet for awhile. I drank my diet soda while Light stared at me with that dark, no bullshitting look of his. I didn't pay much attention to him. I just stared out at the street outside and enjoyed my drink, while I was thinking about what to say, how to start.

I couldn't keep kidding around and beating around the bush like this. It was fun, but I couldn't get anything done this way. Plus, the worst part was the actual break in the conversation itself, the pause in my happy-go-lucky, ever so confident attitude. He'd probably see that as a weakness on my part, and how long I drew the silence, as well as the next words that would come out of my mouth could show him the path he needed to take in order to figure out how to take me down.

My best approach, I believed, would be to act like an unstoppable force. Ask him the question that had been weighing on my mind for the past several hours, and act like anything he does from that point forth bears no consequence on me.

"How did you know?" I asked.

"What do you mean?"

"You killed somebody that I loved dearly. I wanted revenge. Now, I want to know what drove you to say that."

Don't ask too many questions, let him fill in the puzzle.

"It seemed like the kind of thing you'd do. Last night . . . you were good, but you were brash. Your moves were too quick, too full of anger and rage."

"You know how to fight." I said.

"No . . ." he answered. "I've watched people fight."

"On TV. Like everybody else."

"No."

I looked at him coolly. I need more than that, babe.

"Once I saw this kid get beaten up in a playground by a bunch of older guys. They beat him down, tore off his pants, and stole his money. Then they ran."

"Mr. Justice didn't run in to save the day?"

"I couldn't. Those guys were all thugs who lived off the street. If I'd jumped in, I would just have been beaten. The problem wouldn't be solved. Even if I were able to drive them off, they'd just do the same thing to someone else, in some place that I didn't know about. In any case, the deed was already done. I watched the kid curl up into a ball and bawl his eyes out. The thugs threw the pants onto his shaking body, and walked away, like it was nothing. They laughed and joked with each other as they took off. They left that kid alone."

"And you?"

"I gave him some money from my allowance. Asked him if he wanted someone to talk to. He didn't. He thanked me for the money and went home. About a week later, I was waiting for my mom outside of a store late at night, and I saw the kid. I also saw the thugs. They were being pummeled by the kid. They were screaming and begging for mercy. I saw the blood on their faces, the glass from where the kid had shoved them into somebody's car window.

"I tried to stop him, but he was too strong. Steroids. I tried to convince him that beating those guys to death wasn't the answer, but he wouldn't listen. Eventually I grabbed a gun that one of the thugs dropped and pulled the trigger. That distracted him long enough for the guys to run away.

"I saw his rage. He asked me why did I stop him, it was only fair! They beat him, so he beat them! He had been put down for far too long, and it was about time he stood up for his rights!

"Last I heard of him, he'd been arrested. Good had turned evil, and justice was denied."

"I didn't ask for a story." I said.

"Maybe . . . you probably wanted one though. You love stories."

"You're quite the teller," I responded. _Crapzilla, _I wasn't getting anywhere with this guy! I guess I couldn't have expected to get the answer I wanted immediately, but I wasn't feeling very patient at the moment.

"You're quite the artist," He replied. "How many people have you killed?"

"Does it matter?" I asked.

"No."

The Fire Waitress came to our table. She placed the mug of black coffee in front of Light, and slammed my styrofoam cup of Dr. Pepper in front of me. She huffed, turned around, and left.

"She likes me." I said wryly, gesturing at her with my thumb.

Okay, time for the direct approach.

"What's my favorite color?"

"Black."

Too easy.

"Any others?"

He frowned, and didn't respond. He didn't understand what I was getting at.

"Any others?" I asked again.

". . . Red, Purple . . ."

Too obvious.

"Keep going . . ."

How about silver and gold? Silver might be a tad obvious, but gold ought to ring some alarm bells. Oh, and maybe the color white, too! I don't wear it much, but I do like it!

He didn't answer. I could already hear the gears turning in his head.

"Let's try a different question: What was my favorite childhood story?"

"Where are you going with this?"

"Answer the question."

He sighed, and asked "What part of your childhood?"

"Elementary."

He paused, and answered "I don't know."

"I don't believe you."

"Why?"

"Liars lie."

He glared at me. "I'm telling the truth."

"Tell me your best guess."

". . . Something about a mouse?"

Wrong! Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, followed by the rest of the series. And it wasn't my _top_ favorite, it was _one _of my favorites. Alright, it's possible he didn't get the specifics on my life . . . maybe.

"Nope!" I smiled.

He didn't react.

". . . You know me" He said.

"Not well."

"Obviously."

I raised an eyebrow at him.

". . . but you know me from somewhere."

"I'm not God."

"Obviously."

"I'm not a shinigami either."

"What else would you be?"

"You tell me." Please do, Light, 'cause I don't have a clue.

This time he smiled. Crap, what did I do?

"I think you're scared. What other reason would there be for asking me personal questions that, logically, only you should know about? You're afraid I got inside your head somehow, discovered your darkest secrets . . ."

DAMN! Stupid!Stupid!Stupid! Remind me to enroll in a law enforcement course when this is over! That's probably not what it's called, but . . . whatever!

I kept a neutral look on my face as he continued

"Which means you can be beaten."

"Not by you . . . or your precious Note either."

"Why?" He asked grimly.

"Too weak. I'm immune."

He blinked in surprise, and then gave me this calm, nonchalant look.

"Figures . . . but there is a way. I'll find it."

"Maybe you will, but you won't be able to use it." With me, it was a case of Might beats Might . . . at least, that's how it was the last few times I died.

"Swear your life on it?" He asked.

"You'd be better off asking for my soul, Lucy."

"What?"

"Lucy. Short for Lucifer. I read it in a story once and thought it suited you."

He scowled at me. "You're a self-righteous little punk, you know that?"

"You're a self-righteous little punk, you know that?" I echoed.

If he was already telling me about his plans to take me down, it's possible that he didn't get much from our brush earlier, if anything at all. Hopefully, this shouldn't change the story by much. Still, he was a Grammy Award-Winning Actor, so I could be wrong . . .

If that was the case, I could just teach him that I wasn't somebody you should mess with.

My only problem was the How . . . I could handle the physical just fine, but the mental . . . damn, gonna have to leave it to L, but I can still learn a few tricks while I'm here. Too bad . . . I would have liked to have fucked with his brain a little more . . .

"Regardless . . ." Light began, "I will find a way to defeat you . . . Sen. And when I do, you can bet you'll regret ever messing with me.

"Doubt it." I clipped.

"Now, allow me to ask a few questions of my own."

I looked over at his coffee. I had my hand on my cheek with the elbow resting on the table.

"Don't you wanna drink that first?" I figured Light would want to know something about me, get to know his enemy better, and then go back to his own agenda. I wasn't too worried, I found out what I needed to know. 'S far as the two of us were concerned, we were done.

"No." He replied.

A pause, then . . .

"Is it safe to assume that you'll be working with L?"

"Been there, done that . . . for the past few years, anyway."

He blinked in surprise, but regained his composure quickly.

"You haven't turned me in . . . why?"

"Not my job." I said.

I had to choose my next words carefully, I couldn't compromise L's health at a time like this.

"Let's get something straight here, Light: I hate you. I hate you, I hate your ass, and everything your ass stands for. Unfortunately, it's not within my jurisdiction to take you down. If I do, I could quite possibly upset the balance, either here or in some unknown universe far, far away . . . I will not be responsible for that. So, I'm leaving the persecution to L. Not only is he about ten times smarter than I am, but he has everything he needs to make sure that you suffer a humiliating defeat . . . at least he will."

"It sounds like you really admire L."

Oh, no you don't, you little bastard!

"Who doesn't? You've met him . . . sort of. The man's a genius! A genius with a lot of moxie, I might add!"

I laughed.

"Oh God, I wish I could have been there when he freaking OWNED your ass last month! I should have taken pictures! Hahaha!"

After calming down a bit, I went on "What can I say? Anyone who hates you, and can piss you off _that badly, _is a friend! O'! Mine! Hahaha!"

Light's brows had furrowed down into a glare again. I just kept that gleeful smile on my face. It was possible that maybe, just maybe, he sensed that I was covering up all the emotion that I held in stock for L. I couldn't be sure, though, and I couldn't give him any hints towards that direction by showing him that I was worried about him finding out about that!

"So the two of you aren't close."

"Nope!" I said. "Ever since the day we met, and I showed him my powers, the man's been keeping me at arm's length."

I sighed.

"I tell ya, it's been real annoying! I've always wanted to meet a genius, and when I met L, well . . . I thought it was my big chance! But, no . . ." I shrugged. "Well, what are you going to do, huh? You can't always get what you want, but . . . he accepts me as a bodyguard, and that's enough for me."

I leaned back in my chair.

"All I have to do now is to find some other super awesome genius to make friends with . . . great." I muttered under my breath.

"You're his bodyguard?" Light asked skeptically, in this sort of "Yeah, right" tone.

". . . and he hasn't used you to investigate me at _all_."

"I already know all the answers to this mystery." I told him frankly. "L doesn't like to cheat . . . at least, not like that. I'm sure you understand. You _are_ his . . . "other half" and all . . ." I rolled my eyes, imagining all the yaoi fanfics about these two . . . Geez guys! I know death is sexy, and "Hate" means "Love" in fangirl language, but really? Ugh, whatever, I'm not here to judge.

I'm sure he was imagining that now, he wouldn't be able to get at L with the Death Note, so, I decided to put him at ease.

"About the whole bodyguard thing, though . . . I can only do so much, so you don't have to worry. If he ends up dying, then . . . he's dead. I can't do a thing about it." That I know of. "Mostly that's just a title that L's given to the task force so that they feel less uneasy about having an erratic, eighteen-year-old girl on the team."

"So what do you do?" He asked.

"Well, I . . ." I started, trying to think of something on the fly, something besides 'I ruin every act of murder you make, I take your victims and fly them away somewhere else, so whatcha gonna do about it? Ha, ha, ha?'

And that's when I noticed _them._

"You gotta be kidding me." I said.

"What?" Light asked. He didn't turn around immediately, probably thought I was putting up a front.

I wasn't.

There they were, over by the receptionist's desk, talking to a young woman. The woman pointed in my direction, and the two policemen turned to face me.

I had this huge grin on my face, but it wasn't the good kind. It was anxious, and edgy. I mean, sure, I was smiling, but I'm sure my expression still read 'OH CRAP!' to any onlookers.

So, alright, I was freakin' scared out of my _pants, _but . . . strangely, I was excited!

_'Oh noes! It's the poe-poes!'_ I thought giddly to myself.

Light turned to look behind him, and said softly to himself:

"What in the . . ?"

Come to think of it, he may have thought that sentence, I may have accidentally read his mind, I don't know, I don't think so, but . . .

"Sorry, can't talk, gotta go, SEE YA!" I spoke fast as I shot out of my chair and leaped over the patio fence.

Then I ran. I ran hard, I ran fast, and I didn't look back.

* * *

**Vision 33: The Chase**

. . . Of course, I didn't run _inhumanely_ fast. I hadn't seen any action all day, and these two young fellas looked like awesome playmates! I looked behind me and saw the two cops dashing out of the restaurant and tearing after me.

_'Well, crap!' _I thought, grinning, _'Come and get me then, boys, I'm WAITING!'_

"Oof!"

I crashed into the hood of somebody's car. When I looked up, I discovered that it was . . . da, dada, DAAAA! . . . a freakin' police car!

_'Or not!' _I thought to myself before pushing myself off of the car and getting the hell outta dodge.

I could hear the engine starting, and the sirens wailing behind me as I ran. Of course, there had to be third officer, of _freakin' course_! Well, the more the merrier, I say.

I ran down a side alley between some nondescript buildings.

. . . As long as the "merrier" can't catch me of course!

I tried to make the most convoluted path for myself as possible. With the car after me, I'd have to avoid a few streets. Let's see . . . dammit! Why didn't I get that map memorized when I had the chance!

Then my cell went off, playing the Saw Theme Song while buzzing around in my pocket. I cursed, quickly yanked out my phone and pressed the TALK button.

"Yey-oh!" I said, banking a hard right around a trash can.

"Sen, the Task Force needs your assistance, please come to headquarters immediately."

You know, I _could _question the validity of that request, but uh . . .

"Uh, L, this is kind of a bad time for me right now." I said chancing a glance behind me. Yup, still behind me, and gaining! DAMN! And people say the police aren't doing their job right?

I ran down another alley, between some more nondescript buildings.

"The police again?"

Bingo.

"Either that, or I've got some _crazy_ stalkers!" I said, leaning backwards and sliding on my knees under a chain-link fence.

"What did you do?" he asked.

"I don't know yet!" I yelled, grinning while I ran as fast as was humanly possible.

I ran down an alley in between two apartment buildings, contemplating climbing up the fire escapes, but then thinking 'Nah.'

"But I hope it's something good!" I jumped onto a garbage can and threw myself over a wall . . .

. . . aaaannd ended up landing on my ass.

Disoriented, I shook my head back and forth, laughing "I'm running from the _law! _This is cool! Hahahaha!" I pushed myself up roughly from the ground, picked up the phone I'd dropped, and took off again.

I ran towards what seemed to me to be an abandoned basketball court, vaguely wondering if I should try going down into the sewers for an escape. Unfortunately, that dream got dashed when I saw the police car pull up on the other side of the court.

I skidded to a stop in the middle of the court, and looked to my left, my right, and behind me.

The third policeman jumped out of his car and ran at me, pulling something from his belt.

Meanwhile, the other two had managed to catch up, and had pulled out their weapons as well: Tasers. Yeah, you heard me: _tasers, _fucking _**tasers**__! _What, am I _that_ unimportant? Where was the good stuff? Ah well, this will have to do for now!

"Hey, listen babe, I'll see you real soon, but right now, I've got some business to take care of, 'kay? LOVE YA!" I turned off my phone and shoved it into my pocket.

Every one of the men had their tasers pointed at me. I watched them warily as I sidestepped out of the way, least as far as getting out from in between those guys. They allotted me that, but kept within close distance of me.

I laughed a little. "Hey, what's wrong guys?" I asked, opening my arms out to them, while walking backwards. "Did I steal someone's car keys or something?"

"Senyaita Boulibashi" One of the officers said, pulling out his badge while keeping his tasers aimed at me . . . He's gonna be FIRIN' HIS TASARS! . . . I hope. Oh, wait, right, people are talking right now Sen: "You . . . are being arrested for vandalism, multiple vehicle robbery, destruction of public property, and resisting arrest from several acting officers!"

"Oh, is that all?" I asked, rolling my eyes.

"To start with." He responded, "I'm sure you'll be happy to hear the rest of your violations against the law once we bring you into custody."

"Correction!" I said, holding up one finger, "That's _if _you can bring me into custody!"

The whole time, my eyes were searching, back and forth across the lot, looking for something . . . _anything . . ._that could get me out of this mess. I found a few broken beer bottles, a crumpled up soda can . . . so far, so good . . . a few bottle caps and some discarded trash . . . yeaaah, not so good.

"Don't sound so smug, you cheeky little brat!" One of the cops spoke angrily, "Day in and day out, you have been making utter _fools _out of the entire Japanese police force! It's hard enough to keep the peoples' faith in us without you running around!"

I felt a brief sense of guilt make a solid jab at my gut. "Hey, hey, you . . . look, I can't speak for the people, but if I, in any way have done anything to lessen their belief in you . . . I can honestly say . . . _that was an accident!"_

"Bullshit!" He roared, "You enjoy doing what you do and you and I both know it! Just what the hell makes you think you're above the law, huh?"

I saw the other officers give him a warning glare. He ignored it.

I spoke flippantly: "Well, for one thing, I haven't killed anyone," Yet. At least not around here. "I haven't stolen anything, I haven't risked anyone's mental well being, although I will admit to causing a few injuries . . ."

Bar fights, street fights . . . use your imagination.

"Aaaaaaaand I'm fuckin' famous, bitches! Yeah!" I punched the air with both hands, "Anywho, isn't that what most famous people do nowadays? They hit the big time, and then spend all their money doing scandals?"

_"And then _they get arrested by the police and are forced to serve time," The third guy spoke, "Much like you will now."

"That's enough talk!" The first guy said, "Sen, you're coming with us."

"Ummmmm . . . . no!" I said playfully, swinging my leg out to the side and kicking a nearby soda can into one of the cop's faces . . . the middle one.

"OW!" He called out, grabbing at his eye. He's lost focus, now . . .

I dove after the cop on the left. The one on the right tried to get a good hit on me . . . seriously people? _Tasers? _Did somebody sign a warrant or something saying that I shouldn't be shot or stabbed? . . . Well, I guess, legally, you're not allowed to stab someone when you're serving as an officer, but _still! _Come on, guys! Let's stir up the coffee a little!

I ducked, and swung my leg out in an arc, making the policeman in front of me fall backwards. I kept going, and hit the guy behind me in his side before he got a chance to shoot electricity into my system. He stumbled to his right . . . my left. Speaking of my left . . . I took a glance. The mid guy had recovered, and was fixing to take his shot. I jumped up and scurried backwards. I looked down and noticed the taser gun on Left Guy's right hand. He was trying to get up as fast as he could. Quickly I brought my foot down on his hand. He cried out in pain, and loosened his grip. I swooped down and grabbed the taser gun, then pointed it at the two officers.

The one on the right tried to make peace. Bad idea. "Now look, Sen. We know that you don't want to be here about as much as we do. You don't have to do this."

I looked down at my gun. "You know what, you're right!" I flung the thing as far away as I could, towards the street, and then ran at them.

The fists . . . came . . . flying!

"This . . . is . . . much . . . more . . . satisfying!" I grunted out with each hit, bobbing and weaving in between punches and kicks and electrical wiring.

I don't think I'd stopped smiling the entire time!

When the whole thing was over, two of the policemen were lying in a crumpled heap in the police car, one in the front seat, and one in the back. The third one lay curled up in the trunk. The medics, the firemen, and a few guys from a nearby donut shop were on their way!

Meanwhile, I was skipping along the street, swinging my arms back and forth, singing

_". . . so you better run and hide!_

_Mmm trouble, yeah trouble now!_  
_I'm trouble y'all! I disturb my town_  
_I'm trouble, yea, trouble now!_  
_I'm trouble y'all! I got trouble in my town_

_So if you see me comin' down the street_  
_Then you know it's time to go, go!_

_I'm trouble now!"_

. . . Wait . . . oh shit, did I leave my ipod behind somewhere? . . .

. . . Nope! There it is!

_"I'm trouble, yeah trouble now!_  
_I'm trouble y'all! I got trouble in my town_  
_I'm trouble, yeah, trouble now!_  
_I'm trouble y'all! I got trouble in my town, yeah!_

_I'm trouble in my town, yeah, yeah!_  
_I'm trouble in my town, yeah, yeah!"_

* * *

_"We only see two things in people: What we wanna see . . . and what they wanna show us. You don't know Miguel anymore than he knows you."_

"Harry Morgan" (_Dexter; _Season 3, Episode 6: **Si Se** **Puede**)

* * *

_"I sit, I watch, and I imagine . . ."_

Greg House (_House; _Season 3, Episode 12: **One Day, One Room**)

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Blood Theme - Daniel Licht - Dexter Soundtrack**

**House of 1000 Corpses - Rob Zombie**

**Prelude 12/21 - A. F. I. [A Fire Inside]**

**Kitai - Death Note Soundtrack**

**Senritsu - Death Note Soundtrack**

**Immanence - Death Note Soundtrack**

**Dexter Main Titles Theme - Dexter Soundtrack**


	16. Progress, and Yet Another Little Talk

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

**Vision 34: Ice Cream and Surveillance**

It was late.

_Really _fucking late.

And I . . . was . . . BOOORED!

*sigh* Ever since my little _incident_ with the cops, I'd been hanging out at L's. Which wasn't bad, in itself, of course. I spent three days waiting for the Kira Task Force to get the tapes surrounding Raye's death, and then another two days after that waiting for L to hit the goldmine.

During that entire time, I never left L's side. Partly because I wanted to make sure that nothing I did somehow managed to screw his ass over, and partly because . . . I wanted to watch him work. It was all simple curiosity, really. Somehow I'd gotten this inane thought that maybe I could somehow figure out how his brain worked if I sat and watched him watch a couple hundred tapes, but so far . . . nothing. Nada. Eventually, I'd given up and settled for smuggling in some extra Cuddle Time with L. Which was nice . . . _very nice_!

"These are . . ." I heard Aizawa say tiredly from my right, "The recordings of every security camera that happened to capture the F. B. I. agents' deaths on film, as well as the events relevent to them."

I cracked an eye open and looked at him. I watched him rub the bridge of his nose between his index finger and thumb before he continued:

"The footage captured the heart attacks of Knick Staek in the Ginza Department Store, Raye Penber in Yamanotesen, and Nicola Nasberg on Ikefukuro no Hanka Street. These people have been recorded ever since they left their hotels."

"Show me the scenes involving Raye Penber one more time: starting from him at the ticket barrier up until his death." L responded in his usual monotone.

"Okay . . ." I watched him ruffle through the stack of tapes on the table.

"I think it's over there . . ." Matsuda pointed out, "Under there, next to that." He picked up a sheet of paper. I studied his face. Poor thing had bags under his eyes. That, along with the bit of shadow lining his eyes made him look a little bit like L.

"Let's see . . . Raye Penber arrived at the Shinjuku Station via the west entrance at 3:11 PM, just like his train card recorded . . ."

I looked over my shoulder at Mr. Yagami, who stood behind us on the couch. The man was just barely fighting off sleep, blinking his eyes tiredly as he tilted his head foreward . . . once, twice, then a final time before he jerked himself upright again.

It had been a long night for everyone. Kind of made you feel sorry for them . . . Well, they wouldn't have to worry about staying awake for much longer, if tonight was the night L stumbled upon his clue. That, and the fact that L knew as much as I did that the rest of the Kira Task Force couldn't operate as well as he did after a severe lack of sleep.

Everyone was pretty much on their last few threads, the only person who wasn't here was old Monkeybone Ukita (a nickname I'd given him on account of his ears and overall facial structure), who at the moment was holding down the fort at the Police Station.

I figured the team here had at least three . . . maybe two hours tops before they all had to go to bed . . . or dropped dead from wherever they were standing and/or sitting, whichever comes first.

I turned away from the Chief and adjusted myself in my seat, curling around L's frame and nuzzling my face into his neck.

Ah . . . comfy.

You know, I used to be a lot more relentless with my hugs, back in the day. Of course, I loved to hug L for the sake of hugging him, 'cause I wanted to feel like I was close to him, you know? . . . But sometimes I just _had _to mess with him! He wasn't used to physical contact, and would sometimes jolt in his seat every time I jumped him. And let me tell you, he fucking _hated _it! Haha!

It was kind of funny, actually. Sometimes he would freeze up when he knew I was coming (I swear to _God, _this guy's just like my cat!), and other times he would jab me hard in the stomach or other wise kick me hard in the gut just to keep me off him (and man . . . THAT HURT!). Sometimes he'd be polite, and ask me outright not to hug him when he was working on a case. And of course, me being me would have none of that! Haha! Although I did cut him a bit of slack whenever he was working on an especially difficult case.

At some point, however, L eventually stopped reacting to my hugs [DO NOT WANT! . . . ;) . . . XD], and "attacking" him, soon got very, very boring. I never got tired of hugging him, don't get me wrong, I love the guy! It just wasn't worth doing the deed more than I should if it couldn't piss him off in the end. Strangely enough though, I was satisfied with this. I was actually sort of glad he wasn't fighting me off anymore, and I even entertained the thought that he was letting me in a little bit, even though a very large part of my rational mind said that he was just putting up with me, and that this didn't mean a thing.

Again, le sigh; but hey, a girl can dream, right?

". . . He then boarded the Yamanotesen line at 3:13 PM. It's difficult to tell who he was following at this point due to the fuzzy images. Even if we enhanced the images, we still wouldn't know."

"Err . . . and then at 4:42, he died on the platform at Tokyo Station."

"It's quite strange, don't you think?" L spoke.

Yay! Time for Epic L Time!

I smiled to myself.

"I'm sorry, what do you find strange?" Mr. Yagami asked.

I felt a light tap on my shoulder, and turned to see Watari offering me some coffee ice cream in a waffle cone, something I requested about an hour ago, when he'd gone down to the galley to fetch some chocolate ice cream for everyone. I smiled, and gratefully accepted the snack.

_'Dinner, and a show, it can't get much better than this!'_ I thought, wrapping an arm around L's shoulder.

"From what's been said, we can deduce that between the time he boarded, at 3:13, and the time he died, at 4:42 PM, Raye Penber was on the Yamanote line, which usually takes about an hour and a half to do a full circuit . . . he had no extra tickets, and his card has no record of him leaving the train during this time."

"Penber received all of the names, pictures, and other information regarding his fellow agents at 3:21, which is eight minutes after he boarded the train" L continued, "After Penber received the information, he remained on the train for an hour and a half."

I took a long lick out of my ice cream. Yeah, Raito-kun wasn't the only machine running around here!

"Kira can control a person's actions before they die . . ." L mused, "This would explain why Penber's actions were stranger than those of the other twelve agents . . ."

And three . . two . . . one.

"The envelope's gone!" L spoke, shocked. He abruptly leaned forward in his seat, causing me to fall after him. I squirmed in my seat, trying to force myself backward while flailing my arms around so I wouldn't do a face plant into my favorite treat (well, second favorite), or shove the thing into L's hair. When I had gotten myself under control, and my ice cream out of the Mood-Kill Zone, I leaned back into my seat and took another lick of my ice cream, a coy smile on my face.

"Envelope?" Aizawa asked, snapping fully awake and checking the screens, "Huh? You're right! It's there under his arm!" He pointed at a screen depicting Penber boarding the train. "But in the footage right before his death . . . it's gone! . . . I can't believe it, this is amazing, Ryuzaki! You notice the smallest details!"

Kiss ass.

. . . It's true, but he's still a kiss ass.

. . . Slurp.

"There weren't any envelopes on his list of personal affects . . ." Mr. Yagami noted.

"In that case, it must have been left inside the train." L decided, "Something must have happened there."

"Could the envelope have had the agents' information?" Mr. Yagami wondered.

"Kira stole the envelope while they were on the train, and killed Penber once he got off!" Matsuda concluded.

I took another lick out of my ice cream, which I held in my right hand, and promptly slammed my left one down onto a red buzzer which I made appear out of thin air.

"AAAAAAAANN!" The loud noise made everyone in the room (except for L of course, who by now must have gotten used to my shinanigans . . . boring.) jump. I craned my head so that it rested on the back of the couch, looked at Matsuda and said playfully:

"Sorry! Thanks for playing!"

Yeeeeaah, the conversation was boring me. Hey, someone had to jumpstart this shit! See, look, it's interesting now! Aizawa here is giving me the Stink Eye, and Mr. Yagami right behind me is probably giving me one of those parental looks that are supposed to make you feel guilty, and Matsuda . . . he had no idea what just happened! Haha!

"Eh?" Matsuda asked, still reeling from shock

"She's right," L said, off-handedly. I smiled, kind of like a little puppy dog that was given a reward for good behavior.

"Penber boarded the train at 3:13, and he received the information sometime after." He continued, choosing this time to nonchalantly shove his ice cream into my nose . . . what . . . the fuck?

"Penber couldn't have received the information before 3:13."

"Oh . . . right."

I glared at L for a few moments, my new Waffle Cone Nose just barely brushing his hair. Meanwhile, Watari was over at the dessert cart, making a replacement treat for the one that he just wasted . . . on my face . . . Grrrrr . . .

Slowly the ice cream slid off my face, and then finally fell off around the time Watari came over. I shot my hand out in front of me and caught the offending confection before it made a mess on my clothes. Meanwhile, L was musing on a clip featuring Penber's "death".

"It seems as if he's frantically trying to see inside the train the train before the doors close, you can see right here" He pointed out.

"Do you think it could mean something?" Mr. Yagami asked.

_'YEEEEEEEEEEeeeeess!' _I thought sarcastically, throwing L's abandoned ice cream up in the air, where it finally stuck onto the celiing, and then grumpily licking the side of my hand and attempting to wash my face off like a cat . . . Dammit, L!

And course, L has to be more annoying by answering a question with a question:

"Wouldn't it be interesting if Kira was on that train?"

"No . . . no way . . ." Mr. Yagami trailed off.

"I admit, I find that hard to believe as well," L murmured.

_'Do you mean that, or are you just saying that to placate him?' _I thought, still a little irritated. I licked my hand some more and rubbed at my face again.

"There's no reason for Kira to come to the scene of his own crime when he can kill from a distance" He continued, ". . . Well, maybe he was counting on us to make that assumption, and figured he could get away with making such a bold move . . ."

After drying my face off with the back of my hand, I gave up. My face still felt as sticky as ever, and I wouldn't be able to do much about it unless I decided to get up and leave for the bathroom . . . buuuuuuut, I didn't wanna leave just yet. I wanted to wait for L to finish his little ditty so I could bask in his utter awesomeness for a little while. So, for right now, I just had to put up with it. I leaned back in my seat, turning my focus back to my ice cream while I glared a hole into the screens in front of me . . . not literally, of course.

"Let's just say Kira really was on the train, and the security cameras couldn't record the person who took the envelope." L spoke, "It's possible that before the incident, he scouted out the locations of all the cameras and their blind spots . . . if he was ever caught on tape, after all, he could become a major suspect."

_'Screw him Ryuu-kun' _I thought, smirking evilly into my ice cream, _'Screw him over SOOOOOOOOOO hard!'_

Cue the awesome face! . . . whatever that is.

A few licks and a small swallow later, the previously forgotten ice cream fell on my head.

***SPLAT***

_'. . . Dammit.'_

* * *

**Vision 35: A Question of Ethics**

By the time 12 PM of the next day had rolled around, I was still bored. Right now, I'm currently floating in midair on my stomach, sort of like I'm lying down on an invisible bed or a table, my arms stretched out in front of me so that my hands dangled off of the "edge". I swung my legs back and forth in the air while I waited for the lastest briefing to be over.

"Now then, Aizawa will investigate the eleven other agents and the other victims" L said, shoving his hands into his pockets, "Meanwhile: Mr. Yagami, Matuda, the two of you will investigate Penber's death."

The others murmured their assent while I scowled at a wall.

_'Yes, yes, could we move it along here please?'_ I thought impatiently, _'Honestly, do I have to blow up someone's building or car in order to get some action around here? Hell, I don't even think that's going to cut it! Blowing stuff up is so overrated . . . _what am I saying?_'_

I glanced over at Watari-san. He held a phone up to his ear for a few moments before turning to L.

"Ryuuzaki, it's Ukita at the Police Headquarters. He's says he's on the phone with someone from the tipline who has information for us."

_'What, is it another disillusioned loser who thinks that he's Kira?' _I thought skeptically, raising my eyebrows.

I turned my eyes to L, who had his head turned in Matsuda's direction, his black, messy bangs covering his eyes.

"Mr. Matsuda, it's okay for you to turn on your cellphone now; actually, please turn it on right away."

"Oh . . . sure" Matsuda answered, pulling out his cell. The minute he turned his phone on, it started to ring, at which point L gave himself the liberty of swiping the thing out of Matsuda's hand.

"Yes, this is Suzuki, Head of Kira's Investigation Public Information Division." He asked, changing the tone and the accent of his voice ever so slightly.

I snorted, laughing a little to myself as I watched Matsuda glower helplessly at L's back. The look on his face was just freaking priceless! It was one of those expressions that said "Why you little . . .!" and "YOU ROTTEN KIDS!" Haha!

Alright, I'm kidding on that last one, but still! Haha! Get over it Matsuda! He's L, he's a detective, he's world renowned, so by that logic, he gets to do whatever he wants! Haha!

"Raye Penber's fiancee . . .?" L trailed off, sounding interested.

_'YES!'_

I shot up from my "bed" bracing myself on my hands on an invisible floor, and watched L's face attentively.

_'Now we're getting somewhere!'_

"Naomi Misora . . ." L said aloud for Watari's benefit, "Sounds familiar . . ."

He glanced over at Watari, who was already typing away. When he finished, he turned the computer in L's direction, which depicted a file on Naomi Misora with her photograph included.

_'For a female, she was promoted through the F. B. I. quickly: in August of 2002, she arrested the perpetrator of the Los Angeles BB Killings . . .'_

_'Hmm, so it's her . . . that's right, she worked for me under that case . . .'_

I floated over to L, about a foot above the floor, my hands clasped behind my back. At the moment his back was turned to me, so I craned my neck so I could see his face.

_'So . . . she came to Japan.'_

"But then Raye died on the 27th" A worried woman's voice spoke, "I heard about it the day after, I was worried about my daughter so I called her . . . but then she said "Please let me clear my head. I need to think for a while.""

That must have been around the time when Naomi decided to go hunt down Kira . . .

I circled around L, crossed my arms and legs, and peered into his face. It was quite amazing actually, how he acted like I wasn't even here, when in reality I was practically inches away from his face.

_'Think . . .' He thought, 'Did she want to go after Kira too? It's too dangerous . . .'_

Warrior Woman finds out her boyfriend died . . . decides to go hunt down his killer . . . sounds like a selling plot point, if I ever heard one! No matter how overused . . .

"I called her again on New Year's Eve, but her phone was turned off" The woman continued, "It's been like that ever since. She never even returned to the hotel on the 28th."

"Mr. Yagami, is it still possible to locate cell phones that are turned off?" L asked, shutting off Matsu's phone. I circled around the detective as he turned to look at the Chief, and floated behind him with my hands clasped behind my back.

"Raye Penber and his fiancee came to Japan at stayed at the same hotel . . ." L began, handing the phone back Matsuda. "A day after Raye died, Naomi disappeared . . ."

It kind of sounded like he was making up a list in his head.

I followed L as he slowly walked to the other side of the room, staying at least a foot away from him.

"I'm sure anyone in her situation would be pretty depressed" Matsuda stated sympathetically, "Do you think . . .?"

"Suicide" Aizawa finished, decided.

"No, I doubt it." L responded. "The Naomi I know is too strongwilled for that"

NO FUCKING KIDDING!

I groaned a little to myself and rolled my eyes.

". . . not to mention she was also a brilliant F. B. I. agent. If anything, she would most likely try going after Kira on her own instead. Apparently, she came to Japan with Penber, so it's possible that she may have discovered something . . ."

I peered over L's shoulder and watched him bring a thumb up to his lips in thought, biting slightly on a fingernail.

_'. . . Wait, does Kira already know? Has he already beaten me to it and managed to get to her first?'_

I cringed. I had to turn my face the other way in order to hide my grimace and tell-tale guilt. Maybe I should have told him that this was coming, should have just threw all caution to the wind and dragged Misora onto the Force. But, the events surrounding Penber were supposed to be the result of one of Kira's biggest mistakes, right? This is supposed to help L in the end, right? And anyways, those two are still alive, aren't they? It's still okay, right? Right?

I'm not supposed to interfere, I'm not supposed to interfere . . . then what was with that stunt with Light earlier? Damage control. No, I mean the before thing . . .

. . .

You know you just made things worse, right? STOP SAYING RIGHT! And for God's sakes woman, relax! Everything's gonna be alright, the end justifies the means, remember?

. . . Wow, never thought I'd catch myself saying _that _. . . What is going on with me today?

"Everyone, please investigate all of the people Raye Penber was tailing since Kira's experiments on the 19th." L's voice broke into my train of thought. "The list should be small . . ."

"However, Kira should be among them, so we can't reveal ourselves by directly questioning those people . . ."

"Penber was investigating your families" L revealed, "Even though Penber's report said that the families were not suspicious, I would like to have hidden cameras and electronic bugs installed in all of their homes." He glanced back at the group.

Cue the outburst.

"No . . . no way!" Matsuda spoke up first, "You can't do that in Japan!"

"No matter how powerful you are or what your background is, you can't do that!" Aizawa protested, "This is a major breach of privacy rights, if our bosses found out, we'd all lose our jobs . . . and then the suspects . . . I don't see how you could even consider this!"

Which of course, is totally irrelevent since, _**HELLO!**_ We're talking about fucking Kira here!

"You all told me that you were willing to risk your lives for this investigation." L answered coldly. "Now do you mean to tell me you value your jobs over human lives?"

_Very _intriguing question, L-kun! What does the audience have to say? . . . Nothing? . . . Just as I expected.

For a few moments, there was a tense silence among the Task Force. Finally, Mr. Yagami asked, resolute:

"Who was Penber investigating at that time?"

L didn't respond. He looked over at Matsuda, who immediately went over to the side table to rifle through the stack of papers there. Once he found the file he was looking for, he held the papers up and said "According to these, from the 19th of December, Penber was investigating . . ."

He trailed off. Probably double checking to see whether the information he was reading was possibly correct.

"Sub-Chief Kitamura and Chief Yagami's family." L finished.

I looked over at Mr. Yagami, who was in a state of shock.

_'. . . Surprise!' _I thought sardonically.

"Well then, please install the cameras and electronic bugs in these two's households immediately, and try to do it as discreetly as possible." L glanced over at me. "Sen, you will be going with them."

"Roger!" I responded, shooting a hand up to my forehead in mock solute.

"Are you serious?" Matsuda asked in indignation, "You can't do this!"

"If anyone found out, everyone here would be fired!" Aizawa agreed.

Didn't we just settle this?

"Ryuuzaki . . ." Mr. Yagami cut in. Everyone turned to look at him. It must be a leader thing, being able to silence a room with only a few words.

"What is the chance that Kira is actually in one of these families?" He was trying to keep it impersonal, businesslike . . . for the sake of the people. You had to admire the guy.

L looked up at the ceiling.

". . . 10 percent" He responded. "No . . . more like 5 percent." He turned to look at them.

Uh, L? Why do I get the feeling that you're lying? Or are you just that paranoid?

I blinked, and shifted my line of sight back and forth between him and Mr. Yagami. In particular, it seemed L's gaze was almost entirely focused on the Chief, pushing the rest of the men into the background. Said Chief, meanwhile, was staring down at the floor, thinking . . .

"You're going to do all that based on only a five percent probability?" Matsuda asked, disbelieving.

"Right," Aizawa huffed, "Normally I'd want at least a 50 percent chance before doing something as reckless as this!"

"No," Mr Yagami spoke, resolute. "Of all the people we've investigated so far, not one of them seemed even the least bit suspicious. Even if there's only a one percent chance, it's still worth investigating thoroughly." I cast a quick glance at his hands, which had curled up into fists, noting their tension. I looked up at his face . . . and felt a little guilty. His son was a killer, but of course he'd do anything do defend him, as a father. But what did this all really mean in the end?

"Does "investigating thoroughly" mean installing illegal surveillance equipment?" Matsuda asked, "And in yours and Kitamura's home, no less. Isn't there something else we could do?"

Uh, guys, even if you all end up saying "No", I'm pretty sure L's just going to do whatever he damn well pleases anyway.

Mr. Yagami turned his eyes up to L's face, keeping his gaze level with his. The Chief's teeth were gritted, and his expression held just the faintest trace of fury in it. I looked back at L, and saw something . . . dark, and hollow. Very forbidding, and such a classic "L" move. It never bothered me much, hell, in fact I even reveled in that formidable look of his, but I guess if you were standing on the opposite side of where L was, it would take a lot of inner strength in order to stand up to it. But what the hell do I know? I'm only one of the biggest superpowered freaks in the world, it's kind of hard to take anything I say seriously.

. . . Was he . . . testing him? But what would L need to do that for? A precaution for later on just in case he did end up taking Light into custody, because in actuality, he did suspect him the most? Was he worried about Mr. Yagami becoming a liability? I guess that would make sense, but . . .

I looked over at Mr. Yagami, who now had a determined look on his face. He glared at L, saying "I don't have to tell you how offended I am to learn my family is under suspicion . . . Having said that, just go ahead with it."

"And make sure you install them everywhere. I don't want any blind spots in the house, and that includes the bathroom."

"Thank you for your cooperation" L answered smoothly, "I was going to do that anyway."

"Chief, what are you saying?" Matsuda exclaimed.

"You do know what this means, right?" Aizawa asked.

"You have a daughter and wife at home!"

Oi, guys! Ease up! Let him breathe!

"OF COURSE I KNOW!" Yagami raged, surprising all of us.

Yike!

I cringed away from him, and circled around L-kun, hiding behind his stooping figure while I gripped his arm with one hand for comfort. I peered over the detective's shoulder tentatively at the stricken Chief, who had rounded on his subordinates:

"If we are going to find Kira, then we are going to have to do everything we can, otherwise there's no point in doing this investigation at all! So I suggest all of you shut up!"

A thick silence followed. At last, Matsuda said softly, "I'm sorry." Mr. Yagami turned away from him, and adjusted his glasses. Not in dismissal, you understand . . . I think he was just trying to pull himself back together after that little meltdown.

"No, it's okay . . ." Mr. Yagami responded, just as quietly. "I'm sorry."

I felt a dull pain clench at my heart. Great, just what an irresponsible 18-year-old needs, more guilt. I hadn't really thought about the outcome of Light's early arrest in this investigation. Nothing much further than L's, and of course Watari's survival, and even then my focus was almost entirely focused on L. What was wrong with this picture?

L started to walk away from his side of the room towards the couch. I kept close with him, clutching onto a handful of his shirt as I went, huddling close to his body.

"This investigation will require some sacrifices." L spoke, candid. He sat down on the couch. I didn't let go of him, just simply curled myself around him, as I'm wont to do, wrapping my arms around his chest and gripping his shoulders firmly. I laid my head on his left shoulder and turned my face towards Mr. Yagami, who had his back turned to us. "As a courtesy to the Chief and to his family, only he and I will conduct surveillence of their home. The rest of you will work in shifts, one of you will head back to the headquarters and work there, while another rechecks the Penber Footage. The other two will monitor the Kitamura family."

How would this affect Mr. Yagami? This _was _his son we were talking about . . . however indirectly. Let's see, local brainiac, good social life, even if his social life seems to really fucking bore him to death; popular, popular equals good standings . . . for a dad who wasn't around most of the time; for a guy who was like that and wasn't cheating on his wife and actually cared about his kids, the thing he would want most in the world is the knowledge that his kids are doing okay . . . that was how it usually worked, right? So, okay, you're a cop, not home alot, then this huge-ass case comes up and . . . surprise! The perpertrator was your fucking blood! Given that, just . . . what could this thing do to a man like Mr. Yagami?

More pain. I clutched L closer to me and let my eyes trail over to some random space in the room, not really seeing it.

". . . Watari, how long will it take to prepare the surveillence equipment we need?" L asked.

"By tomorrow" Watari replied. "We can install them as soon as we are positive that nobody is home."

"Thank you," L said, "Also, book two more rooms from a different hotel to serve as monitoring stations. Once we've installed the equipment, we will move to those immediately . . . and, Sen?"

"Mmm?" I murmured.

"Please loosen your grip, I'm finding it a little difficult to breathe right now."

". . ."

"Oh . . . sorry."

* * *

**Vision 36: A Strong Heart**

I hated this feeling.

This . . . totally freakin' awkward feeling where I feel like I should say something but wondering if I should just shut the fuck up so I can keep myself from stepping onto any landmines. I was used to doing whatever the hell I wanted, regardless of how other people may have felt about it. When it came to people that I actually cared about, or held some measure of sympathy for, however . . . I might as well have been retarded.

The Task Force was on break at the moment. L and Watari were probably getting the equipment ready. Maybe, maybe not, it wasn't exactly at the top of my priorities list. Mr. Yagami was.

I had trailed behind him as he went down the stairs to the lobby. He walked out the hotel door and stood on the sidewalk for several long minutes, afterwards he went for a cup of coffee. He smoked a cigarette for a few minutes outside the cafe while he waited on his drink. After the waitress brought him his cup, he thanked her and gave her a tip. She left, and he sat there, motionless. He took a few glances at his coffee, probably wondering if he should just dump the cigarette and drink it now, cigarettes for bad for his health anyway. No, the coffee was still hot, and . . .

He sighed, and pushed the drink away. I watched him stare off into the distance with a pensive look on his face for a few moments before I finally decided to just go up and talk to him. I swallowed, and gently brought myself down to the ground, and then walked over to him.

"Mr. Yagami?" I called out.

The Chief glanced up at the sound of my voice.

"Oh, Sen . . ." He said softly, "How are you?"

_'Better than you.' _I immediately thought, then shook myself mentally before my sombre thoughts could suffocate my windpipe.

I pulled out a chair for myself and sat down. Crap, what am I going to say next? Should I be blunt? That's probably the best thing to do in this situation, right? Or maybe I should . . . no, drawing it out makes it worse. So . . .

I heard Mr. Yagami sigh, and looked up. He'd put down his cigarette, snuffed it on the tray in front of him. He smiled cordially at me before saying "You don't have to be worried about me Boulibashi-san. I'm sure the rest of the team is worried enough for me as it is, but thankfully they know enough to just let me be. Not meaning any offense to you, of course, but I feel uncomfortable having anybody worry about me too much."

Well, it seems that Miss Obvious Emotions has been made obvious. Wait, what?

". . . If you didn't want people to worry about you all the time, you should have chosen a different occupation." I pointed out.

He laughed.

"You're right," He said, rubbing his chin. "I suppose it can't be helped."

The both of us sat in silence for awhile. Eventually, Mr. Yagami decided that he did want his drink after all, and reached out and brought the mug to his lips and took a long careful sip. When he put down the coffee, I asked "There's a chance . . . that Kira may end up being your son. L made that clear today." Wow, way to point out the obvious, Miss Obvious!

He didn't respond, so I went on "I'm gonna be perfectly honest here, cause . . . well from my point of view, you sir, are an upright man. However, given the right circumstances, an upright man may be brought down to his knees . . . and lower, until he is a slave to the weight that he carries." Example: Lucifer, Harvey Dent/Two-Face, and of course, Light.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

I gulped, discomfited. "The way I see it, you have three possibilities. Four, actually, if your son does turn out to be innocent. If he's guilty, I figure you will either sink into depression, go mad with rage and go on a rampage (Thank you, Dr. Suess! SHUT UP!), or get depressed for a little while and then afterwards go on with your life. You've got a pretty good thing going at home, Mr. Yagami, it kind of makes sense. You got a beautiful, kindly wife, a son who's popular and earns stellar grades in school, and a cute little daughter, who couldn't possibly cause any harm to anyone. Sure you're not home a lot, but you always do everything you can to make sure that your family is safe and provided for. In a sense, you have a "perfect" life. But if Light turns out to be a murderer, a self-righteous one at that, a person who's against the principles you stand for . . . who knows what may happen?"

I shrugged, and went on:

"Of course, if your son _is _innocent, then there's nothing to worry about. Just business as usual."

"I see" He answered, "You want to know if I'm going to become a threat."

"Err . . . yeah, kind of." I mumbled. Damn it, that wasn't what I was going for! Although it was something to worry about.

"You can relax," Mr. Yagami said gently, "You're a good kid . . . you care about the welfare of others . . ."

If by "others" you mean this peculiar fixation I have with L, then yes, I do care about "others" . . . but hey, I wasn't completely heartless! The last thing we need is another Kira! Especially one with a broken heart!

"As I've said before, you don't have to worry about me. I know where I stand, and I know that I would never do anything to harm anyone else, no matter what the circumstances."

Yeah, yeah, that's what "Death-Note-Free" Light-o said. I frowned.

"It's a little hard for you to believe, isn't it? I guess I understand, given my line of work I run into a lot of culprits who seem too innocent to be truly evil, and the victims . . . I'm sorry to say that not all of them were given the help they needed, and sometimes even when they did get that help . . . it was too late."

He looked downcast, putting a hand to his mouth in dejection. "My son . . ." He began, heavily. I felt a dull pang in my heart as I looked at his face, his expression almost despairing. Any thoughts of skepticism were immediately silenced.

After a few strained moments of silence, he started again "I wasn't around a lot when he was younger . . . that is to say . . ." He sighed, putting his elbows on the table and lacing his fingers. "From the day he was born, to around the time that he'd attended middle school, I'd spent the majority of my time with my family. It was a struggle, trying to squeeze in work and then put aside ample time that I could divide among my wife, son, and daughter. But I did it, because I didn't want any of them to feel neglected . . . I wanted to leave a good memory in their hearts for those times when I couldn't be home as much."

I listened attentively. I kind of understood what he said, but I wasn't sure if I was getting the whole picture.

He closed his eyes, took a breath, and said "Gradually, I ended up spending more and more of my time away from my family. My job was . . . very demanding. At one point, the most contact that I'd had with my family was through the telephone. Things have gotten easier since then, but . . ."

"I'm wondering if I've messed up somehow, somewhere along the way." He turned his face away. "I'm searching through every memory that I have of my family, but . . . I can't think of anything. I just . . . can't imagine any one of my family being Kira."

Emotionally compromised, aren't we Mr. Spock? _Why was he still on the Task Force ? !_

"Jumping the gun, aren't you?" I asked, point-blank, raising an eyebrow. "I mean, no one's pointing the gun at anyone yet." Wait . . . gun . . . SHIT! Bad choice of words!

"I know" The Chief sighed, "And to tell you the truth, if I weren't a police officer, I wouldn't have even considered it."

How is it that I have most of my big talks in front of a nameless cafe somewhere in Japan? Oh, wait, sorry Mr. Yagami.

"But, I am (seriously, WHAT THE FUCK?), and I can't afford to leave any possibility overlooked, especially not now . . ."

He was silent again.

After a time, I spoke up ". . . I'd hate to say this, sir, I really would, but . . . maybe you should consider taking a break from the case . . ."

"No, no, that wouldn't work" I muttered to myself, "You have to face this . . ." I looked at him.

"It's just that, this is your family we're talking about!" I exclaimed, "Your emotions could end up getting in the way of your judgment! Hell, I could be lying to you right now, I could be pretending that I give a damn, when I'm really out for myself! But, if Light does turn out to be Kira . . . you would need to see it for yourself, you would need to be there for the unveiling . . . you can't just hear about it through a payphone . . ." I stopped.

". . . that would be terrible." I finished, timidly.

The Chief smiled, his face a little weary. "You've put a lot of thought into this, haven't you?"

I cringed.

_'About as much thought as I could fit into a three hour timespan.' _I thought.

He clasped his hands together. "You're right, about one thing" he said, "Regardless whether or not someone in my family is Kira, I have to remain on the taskforce. I have to know who he is, how he thinks, and why he's doing things the way he has been for the last few months. I suppose it's understandable that there would be someone like him out in the world, who would want to purge the world of evil. After all, in my lifetime I've witnessed some pretty terrible things, or at least heard of them through a co-worker . . ." He paused.

"Murders, starvation, prostitution, thievery, and lies . . ." He mused, "All this and more is happening somewhere all over the globe. I've known this ever since I was young, and since that time I've wanted to do whatever I could to help stop it."

"Of course, as a police officer, while I can help the people within my hometown, I don't hold any permanent solutions for the problems that occur day to day. Even as we sit here, some scoundrel somewhere is probably getting away with some heinous crime."

Okay . . .

"Given this, perhaps it is possible that Kira is good at heart, and not just a cold-blooded murderer." He continued, "There are some who think he's evil, and there are others who think he's . . . a god, the Great Messiah Returned . . . I guess I could understand that." Noticing my expectant look, he went on, "In any case, what I'm trying to say is that, while it pains me to know that my family is under suspicion for being Kira . . . I just can't walk away. I can't just quit this investigation and hide myself within my work and family because I'm afraid to know the answer. Who knows, maybe Kira is living in my house, perhaps my son, daughter, or . . . even my wife, has been lying to me, to all our family, all this time." He paused once more, trying to fight back another wave of emotion.

He turned his gaze up to mine, and held it. I could see the strength residing in his eyes, and I gotta say, I was impressed.

"You understand, Sen, I have to stay with this investigation." He corrected, "Kira is clever . . . and relentless . . . if he isn't stopped soon, he will end up hurting a lot of people. I've said this before, if I don't give just about everything I have into this investigation, I won't be able to sleep at night. If it does turn out that my family did have something to do with Kira, and I chose to overlook it, I don't know how I'll be able to live with myself."

"Mr. Yagami, aren't you going a little too far with this?" I asked.

"No." He responded firmly, "Kira is doing everything he can to remain hidden until he thinks it's safe, L is doing whatever _he_ can to catch him. Since we've thrown our lot with L in this mess, it's only fair that we do the same. No "ands", "ifs" or "buts" about it. This was already decided when we joined up together on New Years'."

I leaned back in my seat, nonplussed.

"Justice . . ." I murmured, "Fairness . . . give and take . . ."

"Yes." said the Chief.

I shook my head.

"This is all very impressive, very nice and poetic and all . . . but let's face it, Chief, you can still go bad. Out of anyone on this team, you have the greatest chance of turning on us." Next to me, but that's another story.

I looked at him. "This case could ruin you, Mr. Yagami. You're telling me that you're willing to take the risk?"

"Boulibashi-san . . ." He answered.

"Sen" I interrupted, "Boulibashi's such a mouthful."

"Sen-san" He corrected, smiling gently, "I'm telling you that you need to have more faith in people. We're a lot stronger than you think, you know."

Okaaaaaay, Batman flashback!

I blinked, shaking off the notion . . . I gotta watch that movie again, it's AWESOME! _**FOCUS, DAMMIT!**_

I swallowed, and took in a breath.

"Alright," I said, "I'll trust you. But I swear, if you put one toe out of line . . ."

He smiled. "Then you can take me off the case. It's your right, afterall, since you're L's partner."

"You're kidding, right?" I asked immediately, raising an eyebrow. "I'm not L's anything, never have been . . . but I hope I will be someday . . ." I trailed off, turning my head away to stare off into the distance.

And before any one of you thinks anything at all, I need to say one thing:

_**NOT WHAT YOU THINK!**_

"Really?" Mr. Yagami asked, surprised, "But you and he are usually . . . then what are you . . ."

"He's my pimp." I deadpanned. When I turned my head back and saw Mr. Yagami's incredulous expression, I continued. "No, I'm not even kidding. He sells me off the street every Thursday, where do you think all that money he has comes from?"

After a few minutes of staring at Mr. Yagami's expression with a totally stoic look on my face, I cracked, and burst out laughing.

"Haha! I'm kidding! I'm kidding!" I laughed, "I mean, come on Yagami-san, can you honestly imagine L being anybody's pimp ? !"

Ladies . . . shut up. I know what you're thinking, and I'm asking you kindly . . . to shut up. I don't care how adorable L is . . . well, maybe a little.

Mr. Yagami exhaled, and shook his head, smiling.

"You're a real handful, aren't you, Sen-san?" He asked.

"Better believe it, Chief!" I exclaimed happily.

The both of us laughed for a few moments, before reality finally caught up with the both of us and making the both of us sober down immensely.

Eventually, I said, finally:

"It could end up being your son, you know."

I looked him in the eyes for one last time.

The Chief didn't respond. He laid his hand down on the table and stared at his cup of coffee, which had cooled off somewhat. Perfect for drinking . . . but should he drink it, given the circumstances?

"When that happens . . ." A bit more subtle, please! "If that happens . . . I just want you to prepared for it, okay?" I asked tentatively, placing my hand on the table. I turned my gaze downcast once more, staring at my knuckles, the veins that showed up on the back of my hand, those little hairs . . .

He didn't say anything.

I leaned back in my seat. Exhaled softly through my nose in a silent sigh.

More silence.

". . ."

". . . You know you kind of remind me of my Dad?" I asked out of nowhere.

* * *

_"They make it look so easy."_

_". . .Connecting with another human being."_

_"It's like no one told them it's the hardest thing in the world."'_

_Dexter; _Dexter_, Season 5, Episode 12: __**The Big One**_

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Long Way Home - Jon Licht**

**Hey Hey - Superchic[k]**

**E. T. - Katy Perry ft. Kanye West**

**Tokusou - Death Note Soundtrack**

**Torture Me - Metric**

**I'm Only Happy When it Rains - Garbage**


	17. Screw da Rules, Ima Superpowered Freak!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic**.

A/N - In advance I would like to apologize to any and all gay people who are in the audience for anything Sen might say or do in this chapter. She has no tact, I'm afraid.

* * *

_I remember when, I remember, I remember when I lost my mind  
There was something so pleasant about that place.  
Even your emotions had an echo  
In so much space_

_And when you're out there_  
_Without care,_  
_Yeah, I was out of touch_  
_But it wasn't because I didn't know enough_  
_I just knew too much_

_Does that make me crazy?_  
_Does that make me crazy?_  
_Does that make me crazy?_

_Possibly . . ._

Gnarls Barkley, **"Crazy"**

* * *

**Vision 37: Watari**

I just couldn't understand it. What the hell would drive a person to kill another, all in the name of good? Wasn't killing bad in itself? Ugh, maybe I've just lived a sheltered life. Let's see . . . Ganondorf (or as I like to call him, Ganadork) got sealed inside a temple. Scar . . . well he got knocked off a cliff by Simba, but he didn't get killed by him, he got killed by hyenas. Alright, anything PG-13 related? Uhhhh . . . okay, Batman never killed anyone, so far as I know, so gotta skip him . . . and no, horror movies don't count, 'cause then you're just defending yourself and trying to not_ DIE. _

But doesn't it count? Doesn't it? Well, between a choice between you living, and the other guy . . . who, by the way, is only doing this because he either likes it or has had a troubled childhood . . . come on, man, would you seriously just lay down in front of him and give him the "Go ahead! At least I'm a good person!" line? Unless you were motherfucking suicidal, or a freaking _SAINT, _I don't think so!

At least Dexter's case kind of made sense. It wasn't really about justice, at least I didn't think so. It was about assuaging his conscience, about quelling the demon inside himself, about proving to himself that there was some good in him, that there was a reason for him to be in this world.

Uhhh . . . come on, think, think, think! What about the Punisher? Wasn't he some assassin dude who killed a group of men because they killed his family? And the Crow! The guy went on a fucking killing spree because a group of guys raped and killed (in that order, I might add) his girlfriend the day before they were supposed to be married! Happy Fucking Halloween, indeed! There it is, revenge! That's a good place to start, right? No one thinks clearly when they're mad . . . but wait, when you want revenge against somebody to the point of killing them . . . doesn't that take it to a whole new level?_ Damn it!_

I shook my head, and turned my gaze back down to the book I'd been reading:

_"Door to door we went, calling for the men and the boys. We'd shoot them right there in front of their families. Let them see. Let them remember who they were, where they belonged." He was almost panting now. "Sometimes, we broke down their doors and went inside their homes. And . . . I'd . . . I'd sweep the barrel of my machine gun around the room and fire and fire until the smoke blinded me." He leaned toward me, like a man about to share a great secret. "You don't know the meaning of the word 'liberating' until you've done that, stood in a roomful of targets, let the bullets fly, **free of guilt and remorse, knowing you are virtuous, good, and decent. Knowing you're doing God's work. It's breathtaking."**_

Again, DAMMIT! I slammed the book shut with both hands, and sighed. I leaned forward and rested my head against it, feeling the soft pages press firmly against my forehead.

"Miss Sen, are you alright?" A gentle, British sounding voice asked. I turned my head to look.

"Yeah, I'm fine Watari." I sighed, "Just trying to figure out the difference between right and wrong again. So far, the only thing I've got is that this . . ." I raised my hand. "Is right."

I brought my hand down to my lap, my book sitting on my left leg with my other hand laid flat against the cover.

Watari smiled amiably at me. "I'm sure you'll figure it out soon enough. Would you hand me that briefcase over there, please?" I pointed a finger at the case, and floated it over into Watari's hands. He thanked me, and walked up to the Yagamis' door.

"Miss Sen", huh? Miss Sen . . . Missin' . . . Missing. "Is anyone missing me?"

Watari . . . Watari, Watari . . . Quillish Whammy. How to describe him? A tad on the quiet side, maybe. That's as good a place to start as any . . . He's old. Really old. At least 70 years old, if my memory served me right. He is the Alfred to L's Batman . . . An inventor, good marksmanship, intelligent, and an inexplicable ability to blend into the background and then reappear at will. A subtle ability to make his presence, his aura, imposing, to the point where it's almost a point of authority in the room, and then draw back to let others take over.

To be honest, when I first met him, he . . . well, okay it wasn't immediate, not right off the bat, but . . . he kind of scared me. The first day I'd come here, I didn't know what to expect: A fatherly figure or your run-of-the-mill butler? For the first week, I got butler. I was introduced to him, and while my sudden appearance and odd capabilities unnerved him a little, he let it slide and served L his dessert, then went on with his duties. I remember thinking back then how he kind of reminded me of a shadow. Something that was always there, even though it wouldn't always make its' presence known.

A month passed, and I'd still barely spoken two words to him. I didn't know what to do around him. How to explain it . . . well, imagine this: L . . . is a brick wall. Can't get through it, can't break it, can't make it bend. You can only take what it will give you. Watari, meanwhile . . . was freakin' air. A gas, like say Oxygen, or Nitrogen. You know it's there, but you can't grasp it, can't touch it . . .

Maybe the problem was me, I thought. Neither the books nor the anime delved that deeply into Watari's psyche. Just said he was a simple caretaker, and a jack of all trades. The film, however, showed something different. It showed a simple man, one who cared deeply for his charge. Kindly, and a humble servant. My problem was, that I didn't really know him that well. There was no cheat sheet, he was just another stranger. If I wanted to get to know him, then all I had to do was just open my mouth and talk.

Just talk. Right . . .

But I kept putting it off and putting it off, 'cause I wasn't sure what I'd be getting from him, and because I didn't know, I feared.

At some point I finally decided that it was fuckin' ridiculous to be afraid to talk to a complete stranger. For one thing, he was L's companion, so there couldn't be a lot of things wrong with him. For another, there was no real way that he could hurt me, unless it was with words. If he didn't like me, then boo-fucking-hoo, it's back to working on L-kun again. So, one day I walked into Watari's office.

Turns out, whenever they move, there's usually a space for L, L's work, and then Watari. Watari usually kept the bedroom, because L couldn't be bothered to sleep, much less use a bed, unless he'd pushed his body to its' utmost limits. And once he fell asleep, he didn't like to be moved. He liked waking up in the morning, refreshed (although a little disgruntled with succumbing to the weaknesses of his human body), and ready to pick up where he left off. Meanwhile, Watari would do his chores. Keep the place clean, make sure L changed his clothes and bathed regularly, and make sure that our brilliant little detective was always supplied with his usual stock of sweets. Afterwards he would sit down at his own computer and do some work of his own, always prepared to stop whatever he was doing and put himself at L's beck and call.

I'd taken a peek at his files while he wasn't looking once. A lot of 'em involved Whammy's house. Updates on new arrivals, on orphans who'd already left the orphanage and were making something of themselves, and then some who'd decided to stay, and after that, the POI's. The Persons of Interest. Guess who's on the list?

After that, there was just some miscellaneous stuff that I didn't look twice at, mostly because I wasn't interested. Encrypted codes, articles on various sciences, a little bit of history, a little bit of the New Age stuff, some clippings on world news events, and then a few emails from some private contacts whose names were always initialed.

I guess, in a way, Watari was like the human brain, and also a lot like L: He never stopped working. Always productive, always on the alert, because of course he has to watch out for people who are trying to trace L back to someone somewhere . . . Just a simple man.

I remember being in his office. Making small talk with him. I figured, so okay, he cares about L, and is one hell of a butler. Well then, what else? I remember asking if he was afraid of me. I told him that I wasn't lying when I'd said I had magic powers. I also told him that I didn't try too hard to convince L of the fact, even though I was always flaunting my powers in front of himi, because I believed he'd come to grips with it eventually.

"There's another reason, isn't there?" He asked me. I blinked, didn't answer. He turned to his computer, and while typing, went on "You remind me a lot of L. You're not as quiet, and admittedly not as intelligent." Okay, so maybe the polite thing wasn't just a social nicety, maybe he's just polite in general ". . . and you're also more outgoing than he is, if a little reserved on certain aspects." And he knows this, how? I mean, outgoing, yeah, sure, DUH! Intelligence, ALSO DUH! But reserved? Maybe he noticed that I usually didn't answer all of L's questions whenever he asked. Maybe he walked in on a conversation once, but didn't make himself known.

"However, the two of you are similar. You both like to take advantage. You like to play games with people, in your case because you want to see their expressions and get a laugh out of it, and with L, it's because he wants to prolong a case. He wants to be challenged more, get some stimulus out of chasing after a rather difficult criminal. His job, is what's fun for him." He closed his computer. "You also lie. Sometimes it bothers you, and sometimes it doesn't. For L, it's just part of the job description." He laced his fingers together, and propped his elbows on his desk. "The both of you also withhold information a lot. I imagine that you find yourself in a lot of situations where you know more than most would suspect. So does L. You withhold your information and either use it for your own benefit, or wait for a later point in time to tell someone for their benefit."

Pays attention, and . . . was that a slight inflection of intuition there that I sensed?

"The both of you are rather strange, and, also dangerous." He rested his hands on the table. "But you're not evil. I see it in your face, in the way you act around L, myself, and how you always go out of your way to make sure innocent people don't get harmed or killed whenever you're doing one of your stunts." I turned my head to the side, crestfallen. That doesn't mean I should be trusted. At least, not so easily . . .

"Let me tell you something, Sen" I looked up. "You're a rather easy person to read. And you know what I see? A child. A grown child, but a child nonetheless. I have never been afraid of a child, Sen."

"So, in response to your question, no, I'm not afraid of you."

I looked at his old, gaunt face. Something in me couldn't believe that I was actually trusted by this man, just like that. Just like yesterday, I couldn't believe in Mr. Yagami's virtue, I was ready for something to go wrong. Because that was the way of the world as I knew it. Things were okay for awhile, and then, by the law of Yin and Yang and good old Mr. Murphy, something just had to go bad. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the good things in my life, whole-heartedly in fact. But I'm always dreading, and waiting . . .

His face was long, I noticed. And he also had rather large ears. Do all old people have large ears? I thought, thinking about an old uncle I'd had.

"If I'm just a child to you," I asked, finally. "Then what does L see? If you see good in me, then why doesn't . . ."

"L has never been very good with people." Watari explained, "Since childhood, he has always been distant, and wary."

"L's not good with people, but he can read them better than I can read a dictionary. In one sitting." I scoffed. "What is he afraid of? Is it my powers? Does he think I'll betray him? If he can get close to you, then why can't I get close to him? What's wrong?"

There was a period of silence. Watari looked away from me for awhile. Then, "The answer to that question is a complicated one." He turned back to me. "Yes, he's afraid of you, a little bit. Not because he thinks you'll hurt him, or because you might betray him, but because of what you represent. You're incorporeal. You can't be formed or shaped, you just are. Sometimes you confuse him, and other times you're comprehensive, as clear as day to him. But more importantly, your "magic", as you call it . . . that, is the root of it all."

"L has never been a spiritual person. People are born, and then they die. That is the most natural, and the most logical thing to him. People can't have a control over their environment unless they learn, and if they don't learn, then they are a slave. Understand, he likes being in control, he likes knowing that he has his own strength that he can wield over people, and use to topple them over. He likes being challenged as well. It gives him entertainment. However, he can't accept that your magic is real. "Why?", one might ask? Because if he accepts the fact, then he'll have to accept that, no matter what he does, he is weak. He can be controlled, he can be used, and he won't even know it. Even he he does know it, chances are he won't be able to do a thing about it. He'll start thinking about God, about purpose, about the afterlife, what has he done for this world, and was it really good enough?"

"There are things we can control, and then those we can't, either through some higher power, or because someone here on earth is controlling the strings, and is affecting us. Death is inevitable. Aging is inevitable. We can't control that. But we can control our actions . . ."

I exhaled sharply through my nose in a sigh, and shook my head.

"I still don't understand." I said.

"You're changing the answers, Miss Sen." Watari said. "Answers to everyday life that we are supposed to know as the absolute truth, nothing before and nothing after, subject to nothing. You're unstable, and you have the ability to make the things around you the same way: Unstable."

I sat down, plopping myself in a hard-backed, wooden chair of a glossy, dark brown color that I'd made appear out of the air. I brushed a hand through my hair. "So how did you get to this answer?" I asked, "How and what made you figure this out?"

"I am old, Sen." Watari answered. "I am old, and have seen the world for what it has been, what it is, and what it could be. For a time I contemplated the existence of God and heaven . . . For years people have gone back and forth, trying to prove and disprove His existence. As an inventor, I myself like to believe that anything is possible. However, I understand that there are some people who won't be able to accept that, even if they suggest otherwise. When "anything" runs outside their scope of understanding . . ."

"People fear what they don't understand" I spoke up. "That old saw, right?"

Watari smiled. "I'm glad to see you're getting some good use out of your dictionary. Yes, that is more or less the case. That is why L fears you. He tolerates you because of your child-like, and rather rambunctious, nature. And he fears you, because you're a variable, one possibly beyond his comprehension."

"It's just magic." I muttered, dejected. "Alakazam, Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo, Hocus Pocus and all that. It's not like it doesn't have it's own set of rules."

"Yet the rules are always changing." Watari noted, "Isn't that the definition of magic? It can always take on a different form. It just depends on how you use your imagination."

I rubbed my forehead. "I didn't expect you to have any opinion on this."

"I mean, seventy years old, an inventor, owner and founder of an orphanage, and L's caretaker. How does someone like you . . . why would you even contemplate this? Why would you bother trying to figure it out, what need would you have to think about this?" I looked at him. "Shouldn't you be concerned with the law, the orphanage's upkeep, finding a new treat for L, that sort of thing?"

"I do think about those things." Watari answered simply, "But I don't believe that they are the only things worth thinking about."

He's kidding, right?

I leaned back in my seat. Stared at a bookshelf Watari . . . guess I should call him Whammy, it's not like there's anybody here who can read my mind. Anyway,_ Whammy, _had this big old book shelf, it was made out of wood, the same glossy brown-type wood mine was made of, and it covered an entire wall. So many books, a lot of them reference texts, a few journals, a few leisure reads . . .

"Is there anything else?" I asked. I found it kind of weird that I found some way to bond with Whammy by talking about L. "What do I need to know about L?"

"Nothing you can't figure out for yourself, I'm sure." Whammy answered. "As I'm sure you've noticed, L . . . is on a different level from most people. Not just because he is a genius, but because he sees the world differently from everyone else. He understands that people can lie, hurt, and betray. At the same time, he understands that people can also be kind, caring, and selfless. But he prefers to be alone because that's how he works best. No interruptions, no complications, no impediments. It's not that he hates people, in particular. I believe he's just got it in his mind that he's better off alone. Well, almost alone."

He leaned back in his chair.

"I found him when he was just a boy, and since then I've always been at his side, encouraging his interests, and supporting his needs. Because of this he developed an attachment to me. I believe he sees me as a sort of father figure. He told me once that, since he had me, he didn't need anyone else. He didn't need to love anyone, and he didn't need to make any friends. All he wanted was one person he could trust."

He smiled, a tinge of mirth in his expression.

"I remember, years ago, sometime after L had decided to be a detective . . . he had subverted World War III, and the criminal was handed over to the authorities, possibly awaiting death row. The day after his arrest, he turned to me, looked me straight in the eye, and said "Watari, I'm going to need you to do some field work for me. Some of it will be dangerous, and if you're not careful, there's a 13% probability that you could be killed or tortured. I suggest you study hard, and invest in self-defense. If you die, I won't be at your funeral."" He chuckled.

"He's a merciless one, that L." He murmured, "I don't fault him for that, though."

Such a liberal and accepting person . . . yeah, needless to say, I was a little shocked. Alright, so the guy is an inventor, he is willing to open his mind, to think outside the box. He takes the ideas around him, or the ideas that he draws from within his own subconscious, and molds them to create something new, something beneficial to people . . . or something to keep him entertained at least. I couldn't comprehend how he was taking this whole magic thing in stride . . . had he had a supernatural encounter before, somewhere in his shadowed past? 'Cause, when you think about it, the amount of personal information that we can find about Watari adds up to pretty much the same amount as L's. We know he was an inventor, knows how to shoot a gun, is L's manservant, founded an orphanage . . . but after that, that's pretty much it.

I shook my head.

"You know, I kind of imagined you having this cruel streak." I spoke, "I figured that L was, perhaps, an experiment for you, a new toy to play with . . ." I looked at him. "Is that true?"

Watari returned my gaze. From where I sat, I could make out the color of his eyes. Greyish blue. Huh.

"I wouldn't say so, not especially." He answered "Just . . . immensely curious. Since the day I met him L has always stood apart from other people. He was complicated, and yet so simple in so many strange ways. An alien, an enigma. That was who he was as far as I knew him. I could say that his mind and personality were both like a large, complex puzzle, but then I'd be lying. He usually frightened people away because they couldn't understand what was going on in his head, they couldn't understand why he didn't do certain things and why agreed to do other things that most people would never dream of accepting. But it was for this same reason that I was drawn to him."

"He fascinated me, to be perfectly honest." He laced his fingers together again. "In him I found . . . a profound discovery. I saw the potential in him, and wanted to nurse it the best I could. I never pushed him in one direction or the other, because I wanted to see where he would go when left to his own devices, and whenever he went, I decided that I would follow him anywhere . . . Because I wanted to_ know_, because I wanted to know if there was anything else outside of the world I already knew that I could discover, while I was with him."

"Perhaps, back then, I fell in love with the strangeness of him, and wanted to be close to him because I wanted to know if his . . . secret truths were as strange and grand as I imagined them to be. Eventually I discovered that, despite his little quirks, he wasn't that strange at all. He was just another human being, just like myself. At the same time, however, as the years passed, I've gained a new perspective on things. Learned . . . lessons, facts, and philosophies that most people can't be bothered to think of."

"One could probably think of this as an award, for believing in L and his strangeness, or perhaps rather, an award for befriending a man most men and women wouldn't dare get close to. I honestly believe that, if I hadn't decided to look after him, to personally keep him under my wing, he would have disappeared into smoke. I'm not saying that he would have died, but that he would honest to goodness disappear. Maybe what is human in him would disappear along with him, detaching from him at a crossroads, both of them taking their seperate ways."

"I believe, however, that the real reward that I received, was being L's companion. I know how hard you've been trying to get yourself into his world, to get close to him. Let me tell you now, that L has spent years perfecting the wall he has built around himself. He has never needed to break it down, nor was he given a reason to. If you can find some way to convince him to let down that wall . . . you have my utmost respect, and my congratulations. Because, L is one of those people that not many get to meet everyday. He is remarkable, and he is special. And, he is also a man. Don't forget that. Despite how he may act, there is a part of him that can connect to people. All you need to do is to persuade him to do so."

So, he knew what I was doing, and he was encouraging me. Well, whatever.

I looked away from him. I exhaled through my nose softly, silently, and said "You make it sound easy. L's a pretty tough nut to crack."

"I didn't say that it would be easy to get close to him. Just that you're welcome to try if you please." Watari . . . Whammy, responded.

Silence.

"I envy you." I murmured morosely. "You . . . you're usually just a shadow in the background, but . . . you really care about L, don't you?"

"Yes."

"You would . . . do anything for him." I swallowed. I felt like a small, invisible hand had grabbed onto my throat and started squeezing.

"Yes."

"The closest person to L . . . perhaps the one he cares about most." I stopped, and didn't say anything more.

Time passed. Hours, days, months . . . Sometimes I would strike up conversation with him when I passed him in the hallway. Other times I would seek him out, and we'd sit down and have long talks about . . . well, pretty much anything. We'd drink tea, his an Earl Grey, mine black, spiked with plenty of sugar. It was . . . nice.

Sometimes some things aren't as complicated as they seem to be. And then sometimes . . . they were just that complicated. That's the conundrum of life, I suppose.

* * *

_"Humans, for the most part, don't have a clue. They don't want one, or need one either. They're happy, they think they have a . . . good lead on things."_

_"But, why the big secret? People are smart, they can handle it."_

_"A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals, and you know it!"_

_"Fifteen hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth was the center of the universe. Five hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth was flat, and fifteen minutes ago you knew that people were alone on this planet."_

_". . . Imagine what you'll know . . . Tomorrow."_

Agent K and James Edwards (Agent J),_ **The Men in Black (1997)**_

* * *

_And I hope that you are having the time of your life  
But think twice, that's my only advice_

_Come on now, who do you, who do you, who do you, who do you think you are,_  
_Ha, ha, ha! Bless your soul!_  
_You really think you're in control_

_Well, I think you're crazy_  
_I think you're crazy_  
_I think you're crazy_  
_Just like me_

Gnarls Barkley, **"Crazy"**

* * *

**Vision 38: Light . . . You're a Bitch . . . ADMIT IT!**

"I'm home!" Light's voice sounded from the speakers.

I paid it no mind. I was curled up around L, once again. My arms wrapped around his chest in a cross, my left hand gripping his right shoulder and my right, his left. My legs were wrapped around his waist as well. My head rested on one shoulder. I was dozing, eyes closed.

I caught a faint whiff of scented soap emanating from his hair. Wonder when Watari . . ._ Whammy, _stuffed him in the washing machine today. And before you ask, no, I'm not kidding. L uses a washing machine as a bathtub. Check it out on YouTube.

"Yagami, Raito . . ." L spoke, "According to the people who installed the surveillance equpiment, there was a small trap made to tell whether or not someone entered his room while he was out."

Yeah, the trap is called "I'M A FREAKING DECOY, DUMBASS!" I hoped L realized this. The trap itself was too simple to be actually considered "a trap", when you thought about it. If you wanted to get into Light's room and not get caught, all you had to do was to remember to put the paper back in, end of story.

"Other than that, his room does not have anything strange . . ."

"He's entering his room now. That should be camera number 85." I heard him press a button.

A few moments later, I heard a subtle creak of a door opening, and then the sound of Ryuk's voice:

"How's it goin'?"

Low, raspy, and mischievous. Good old Ryuk!

"It doesn't seem like anyone's home right now, do you want to play some video games? How about Mario Golf?"

When Light-o Right-o didn't respond, he sputtered "Hey, come on! It's been awhile!"

I wonder if I should bring him a Gameboy to fool around with . . . nah, he should be fine.

"You listening?" Ryuk asked, getting impatient.

Giving you the cold shoulder . . .

"Hey Light!"

Me being me, yeah, of course I could rig the monitors and all the other high-tech such and such so I hear Ryuk's voice through the speakers. I think I may have mentioned earlier how I have the ability to turn on and off any power I chose . . . though, perhaps not in so many words. I wasn't sure if his Shinigami "invisibility" shit factor extended to being unable to register with any type of surveillance equipment known to man. It's kind of complicated . . . see, normally if you don't have a Death Note, of course you wouldn't be able to see or hear a Shinigami, no matter what you did, even if you knew that they existed. But, because I was gifted with magical abilities, I could see and hear the dude just fine. But, we're talking if I were face to face with him . . . or the guy he was currently haunting.

So, hence, why I rigged the system just a tad. I liked knowing what was going on, being on the inside, you know? Heh . . . the unseen Double Agent.

"So he set a trap there, after all. Does he have something to hide?" In order: Again, not a trap; and, Yes.

Mother. Fucking. Yes.

"If you take into account that he's seventeen, this kind of behavor is not particularly abnormal. When I was his age I did strange things too."

_'And those things would be . . .?' _I thought, a corner of my mouth curling up into a snarky grin. I cracked an eye open.

"If he is hiding something, he's not doing a very good job of taking care of it." I spoke, sardonic. "I mean, seriously, a _piece of paper? _Is this guy counting on people to not pay attention to their feet?"

"True enough" L responded, "Most likely this trap . . ."

"Trick." I interrupted. "A parlor trick to be exact."

"This trick . . ." L conceded, "Was either set up very recently, or was intended for his younger sister and mother."

"By the way, Mr. Yagami. I hear that your son is interested in the Kira case and is conducting an independent investigation. Have you mentioned any information to him regarding our efforts?"

"Of course not!" Mr. Yagami retorted, "I've never once revealed classified information to my family!"

"Besides" The chief continued, sullen, "I don't get to see them too often these days and, usually as soon as I get home, all I can do is sleep." He put a hand to his head, and rubbed at his temple.

"I see . . ."

***.*.***

Light, you are a bitch. You're an asshole, a butt wipe, a butt muncher, an ass sniffer, and just about every obscene thing there is out there! Hell, I knew this was coming, and yet I still feel the urge to beat your bum against the wall!

I stood behind the couch, where Mr. Yagami and L-kun were still currently sitting. My arms were crossed in front of my chest as I glowered at the screen, one eyebrow raised.

Yup, ladies and gentlemen, this was the porno scene. Now, it's not like I haven't viewed my own share of porn as well (the subject of which is none of your business, thank you very much), but_ this _was freakin'_ bitchin'!_ And NOT in the good way! Of course, I am a little biased, but still . . .

I noticed Ryuk hovering over Light-o Bite Me Bitch, staring at the magazine. He jolted, coming to himself, and looked around him.

"Oh! I . . . have to find the . . . cameras!" Ryuk sputtered.

That actually made me smile a little. _'Heh. Don't look at the porno, Ryuk-kun! Naughty, naughty!'_

"I can't believe my son is looking at those magazines!" Mr. Yagami spoke softly, aghast. "He's usually so serious all the time!"

_'Do tell' _I thought cynically,_ 'Alarm bells are going off, but I'm thinking they're the wrong kind of bells.'_

"Hm, it's normal for a seventeen-year-old" L murmured, indifferent. "But it seems contrived . . . it's too obvious. _I think he's faking this to make it seem normal that he covered the door gap with a slip of paper."_

_**YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!**_

A huge grin split my face in two. I did a little dance in my head. Both of my fists were in the air swinging in a circle, while my hips followed the same motion. Then, I suddenly stopped to do the Russian dance, crossing my arms in front of my chest and kicking one foot out and then the other as I moved backward, along the back of the couch.

_'Go L! Go L! Boom shaka laka! Boom shaka laka, BOOM BABY!'_

Ha ha!

"Ryuzaki, don't tell me you still suspect my son!" Mr. Yagami exclaimed, turning toward him angrily.

"Uh, freaking_ duh_!_"_ I broke in. Mr. Yagami turned to look at me, surprised. L continued to face the TV. I'm being ignored . . . sad. Well, at least he's letting me talk.

"Mr. Yagami, by your accounts, Raito" Bite Me Bitch "is an ordinary teenage boy, am I right?" I asked.

"Y-yes . . ." Mr. Yagami answered, taken aback.

"Alright, then answer me this: what kind of seventeen year old boy just _looks_ at a dirty magazine? Doesn't do any sort of jacking off whatsoever! Just . . . sits there! While I will confess that, yes, people do a lot of weird things when they think they're alone, I can guarantee you, without a fucking doubt, that this isn't Light's "weird thing"."

"What are you saying?" Mr. Yagami asked.

"Well, I'd just about say that right now there are three possibilities here: Either your son is Kira, knows that the cameras are in his room, and is being a total fuck-off by showing the monitors the porno mags . . . or, your son is_ not_ Kira, but he knows the cameras are there and is being a mother-freakin' creepy exhibitionist, or . . . YOUR SON IS_ **GAAAAAAAAAAAAAY****!**"_

"Are you serious? !" Yagami stood up quickly from his chair, greatly offended that I slandered his so-called perfect son after I had tried to comfort and make friends with him just yesterday.

"As a heart attack." I responded, an impudent little smile on my face.

"There is no way that any of those things are true!" Yagami protested.

"Yeah? Can you prove it?" I asked. "How about this, has your son ever brought a woman home?"

"He . . ." Yagami started, but couldn't finish, because the obvious answer to that was a resounding _"No."_

"Has your son, by your knowledge, shown any signs of being serious with any kind of woman?" I asked.

This was way too much fun!

"I . . . don't think . . ."

"That's what I thought. I rest my case." I closed my eyes, and nodded my head.

"What does this have to do with the case?" Mr. Yagami asked, frustrated, rubbing at his temples again.

"Probably nothing" I answered, "'Cause really, there's no way right now to prove whether he's Kira, normal, or Normal and in Denial. Or is there?" I rubbed my chin in thought. "Classic move of a man in denial about his sexuality is to pretend that he's attracted to the sex he thinks he's supposed to like. I can see it now: He walks into a store, picks out a random porn mag, doesn't even pay attention to the cover, buys it, and brings it home. Afterwards, he tries and tries and tries to jack off to the pretty women, but to no avail. Not that I can entirely blame him . . ."

I pointed at the screen. "I mean, just look at these bitches! This one's overweight, this one has too much make up, that one's too old, that one's way too fucking skinny! Not to mention that nasty little wart that blonde there has on her chin, that distasteful little birthmark on that chick's stomach that looks like someone tried to rip her guts out, and . . . my god, that poor little brunnette takes_ terrible _care of her legs! Look at all that hair! And what the heck are those little red bumps supposed to be?"

"Strange . . ." L spoke mildly, "Those things weren't there five minutes ago . . ."

Wait, he was paying attention to that?

"Sen . . ." L turned to me, pinning me in place with those phantom-like, bottomless eyes of the grand abyss of his.

"You didn't happen to mess with the video feed, did you?"

As we spoke, Light was jerking away from his mags in shock. He'd just noticed this too.

"I . . ." Couldn't find the words. I choked, and then swallowed.

I put my hands behind my back, tilted my face to the side, and answered flippantly:

"And if I did?"

"Then I must ask you to please leave the room." L responded, just as casually. "If you can't behave yourself while we're conducting an investigation, then I can't allow you to stay with us any longer."

Ugh. I rolled my eyes.

'Yes,_ Daddy . . .' _Tch, yeah right.

"And who's gonna make me, you?" I asked, snarky. I raised an eyebrow at him.

When he didn't respond, I closed my eyes and turned to leave. "Fine, I know when I'm not wanted. I'll just go to my room and blast some music, then." Then I walked out of the room. And the minute my foot stepped on the other side of that door, an evil grin tore over my face.

_'I'm gonna have SOOOOOO much fun with this shit__!' _I thought, '**MUAHAHAHAHAHA!**_'_

**.*.*.*.**

Later, sometime in the early morning, maybe it was three o'clock, I would sneak Ryuk a bag of apples. Light was sleeping peacefully in his bed, none the wiser. I came in through the window, invisible only to the cameras. Ryuk looked at me, shocked to see me arrive under such heavy security, and then he spotted the apples. I swear, I could see those little yellow fish-eyes of his get at least a centimeter wider in diameter.

"For you." I said, tossing him the bag.

"WAHAHA!" Ryuk exclaimed in delight. He jumped at the woven satchel, wrapping both his long and spindly arms and legs around it. "Heeheehee! YES! YES! YES!" He tore the bag open and shoved one hand in for an apple, then he took a large, hearty bite into the red fruit with a loud "crunch!"

He chewed noisily, enjoying his unexpected treat. He went to take another bite, and then I grabbed his arm and pulled it away from him. He looked at me, nonplussed, little specks of apple surrounding his bear trap mouth.

"Don't worry, it's nothing personal. Just wanted to let you know that you won't have to worry about these things showing up on camera. Just do me a favor and make sure Light-o over there" I tilted my head in said dog-breath's direction "doesn't know about it."

"Oh, sure! Sure!" Ryuk exclaimed excitedly. He yanked his arm back, and I let him go, and polished off his apple. After a few quick chews and a swallow, he said "Hey, thanks!"

I smiled, amicably and cheerfully.

I turned to leave, and gave him a quick salute with two fingers. "I'll be back tomorrow. Hope you enjoy yourself!" I grinned, and took off.

The last thing I heard before the wind started blowing around in my ears was the sound of Ryuk's hysterical, insane, and happy laughter.

* * *

_"Heheh . . . Hey Light, maybe you underestimated L."_

_"As long as I'm being watched . . . you can't eat apples in my room."_

_". . ."_

**"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?"**

Ryuk and Light Yagami, _Death Note (Live Action) [2006]_

* * *

**Vision 39: Obligatory Axel F Reference **

**(Also: I'm such a Jerk! XP)**

I'd put together a surveillance room of my own a little while ago, while no one was looking. It wasn't much, just a television on top of a wooden paneled desk, that I'd put in my room, in front of my bed. No remote required. The feed coming from the screen was basically a fly-on-the-wall technique. I could see whatever I wanted, without any obstruction. Zoom in, zoom out, spin around, the works. Next to the television was a keyboard I'd bought a few months back.

I walked into my bedroom, and closed the door softly behind me. I laid my palm flat on the door for a moment, and soundproofed the room. A throbbing pulse shot through and out from my hands, and spread through the entire room, leaving a faint shimmer in its' wake. That stupid smile was still on my face. I walked over to the TV and turned it on, trying not to quiver in anticipation. Then I grabbed my keyboard and pulled it close to my bed. I sat down on the plush covers and cracked my knuckles.

_'Let the games begin!' _I grinned. I wriggled my fingers in the air, loosening the joints, and then laid my hands in my lap. As we speak, Light was going gung-ho crazy with his Death Note.

_'I'm gonna show _you_, L!' _Light thought furiously, scribbling down names inside his bag of chips.

_'With Ryuk's information, and my preparations, I can continue to kill criminals whose names are broadcast on the news, while masquerading as a typical high school student studying for his entrance exams!'_

Wait for it . . .

_'Just watch me L . . . I solve equations with my right hand, and write names with my left!'_

_'I'll take a potato chip . . . AND EAT IT!'_

_*snap*_

_**"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"**_

A high pitched scream shot through the room as soon as Light took the first bite. A loud, painful, honest-to-goodness horror movie worthy Death Scream. Caught off guard, Light jerked back in his chair, nearly toppling it over. The chip forgotten, he looked around his room quickly, searching for the source of the noise. Even Ryuk had stopped in his convulsions, and lifted his head off the bed to see what was going on.

Moments later, Sayu and Mrs. Yagami came bursting in through his door.

"Light, are you all right?" Sayu asked, frantic.

"We both heard a loud scream coming from your room." Mrs. Yagami said, looking around Light's room, "What happened?"

I slapped a hand over my mouth in an attempt to stifle my laughter.

'What happened?_ What happened?_ I'll tell you what happened: LIGHT MURDERED A POTATO CHIP!'

"I-it's nothing Mom" Light said, smiling awkwardly, trying to be reassuring. "It's probably the neighbors . . . must have been watching a horror movie and set the volume up too high."

My shoulders were shaking now.

"It can't be . . ." Mrs. Yagami said, shaking her head, "It sounded too close for that, it was so loud."

"Yeah! We thought you were being murdered!" Sayu piped up.

"Sayu!"

"Well, we_ did!" _Sayu insisted.

"Mom, Sayu, it's okay" Light said, calming down. "Nothing's wrong, I'm just studying for my entrance exams and . . . it's all just a misunderstanding, you guys, I'm fine. I promise!" I noticed, absent-mindedly, that Light was trying to make sure his body stayed in front of his bag of chips at all times.

"Are you sure?" Mrs. Yagami asked, worried.

"Yes, I'm sure" Light said gently, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to study."

"Well, alright Light, if you say so" Sayu said, turning to leave, a little skeptical.

_'Heeheeheehee!' _I thought giddly, biting on my thumbnail._ '__I'm sorry Light. Wait, no I'm not, but there was no _way_ that I was gonna take you seriously after _that_! Hahaha!'_

Operation: The Life and Times of the Defenseless Potato Chip has been completed! Continue to phase two!

**.*.*.*.**

"Aw, man! I forgot I had this due!" Light groaned, holding up a small stack of papers in his hand. "Oh well, best I'd finish it now before I forget about it later."

He turned on his computer. He clicked on the Word Processor progam link on his desktop, and began to type . . . or at least he tried to. The minute his fingers hit the keys, instead of making words on the screen, sounds came out. He couldn't immediately identify the instrument, but he guessed that it was probably a synthesizer. Thinking his ears were playing tricks on him, he tried pressing the keys again. A series of notes from the same instrument emerged.

After that, I took it from there. I hacked into Light's computer so that it now showed an 80's-based, lava lamp-looking screensaver, replete with bright flashing lights. I brought a disco ball down through the ceiling of Light's room and shone a small light on it, so little polka-dots of light scattered throughout the room.

This whole time, I was playing my keyboard, rocking out to the beat of Axel F. Random keys on Light's keyboard went down by itself at the same time, at the same rhythm, as I played my keyboard.

I laughed, and paused for second. I tilted my head back and spoke to the air

"I loooooove messing things up!" Then I continued playing.

**.*.*.*.**

The next four days followed the same pattern: A series of practical jokes and pranks. I'll name a few here:

1) On Jan. 9th, I hacked into Light's computer again while he was doing some research on the internet. I crashed his whole system, and then pulled up a window on Gay Porn. About three or five studly men, two of them blonde, the rest brunette, danced on the screen to Right Said Fred's_ I'm Too Sexy for My Shirt. _Light frantically tried to turn off the computer, he even tried to pull the plug, but to no avail. Ryuk just rolled around on the ceiling, laughing his balls off.

2) On Jan. 8th (backtracking a bit here), I got into one of Light's textbooks and scribbled down the following in bright red nail polish:_ "Hey . . . hey you . . . ever get the feeling you're being watched?" _The message only stayed there for a few moments, long enough for it to register with Light's brain, and then it disappeared.

He closed his textbook, leaned back in his chair, and rubbed his eyes. When he opened his eyes, he found the following message on his bedroom wall, written in dark red, coagulated blood:_ "Peanut Butt is the answer." _I'd meant to write Peanut_ Butter, _but figured "butt" was funnier at the last minute.

3) On Jan. 10th I sent him a series of "mysterious" phone calls. I slapped a small machine on the phone so I could distort my voice a little. This is what I said:

_"Have you checked the"_ Here a computerized monotone voice speaks for me"**Death Note**_, child?"_

I sent that same message at least five different times throughout the day. I even got some poor sap in Light's school to relay him the call while he was in class doing a presentation! When he asked who sent the message, the kid shrugged and said that according to the school secretary, the Caller ID said that the call came from his house.

4) I messed with his food and made it taste like apples. Light tried to pass it off like it was nothing unusual . . . until his sister noticed that her food tasted like apples too. His mom went over to check her cookbook, wondering what could she have put in that would have made meatloaf taste like apples?

5) On Jan. 11th, I slapped a note on his back that said "ARREST ME!" He couldn't take it off by himself, and had to have a friend take it off for him. Underneath the slip of paper was a note written in white paint that said "I'M GUILTY!" So, he had to take off his jacket. On his shirt read "I'M KIRA!" He quickly excused himself and went into his house to change. When he took off his shirt he found the following written on his back in black permanent marker "FEAR ME!"

It would take him at least three hours before he could wash the ink off his back.

6) I hacked into his computer so that every time he turned it on, a message in black font, with a white background would appear on his screen and say (With a computerized voice chiming in)_ "_**You've Got Hamsters!**_" _Then, it would immediately cut to a video of hamsters dancing to LMFAO's Party Rock Anthem.

7) I listened in on a phone conversation between him and Takada, a girl he was currently dating to keep up appearances. Here's how the conversation went:

_"So, Light, what do you think about hanging out together this weekend?"_

_"How would you like to suck my balls!" _Light responded instantly.

_**"What?"**_

Poor thing couldn't control his mouth, it seems, because_ then_ he said

_"Oh, oh, I'm sorry . . . what I meant was" _He walked around her and yelled right in her face, while doing some impressive sign language, I might add:

_"HOW WOULD YOU_ **LIKE . . . **_TO SUCK MY_ **BALLS**! _. . . Miss Takada!"_

8) I messed with his shoes and made them play Rockwell's "Somebody's Watching Me" every time he took a step. I did the same thing to the rest of his shoes.

Cheap? Maybe. Sure, I'll admit it . . . Funny as hell? FUCK YEA! Poor asshole never knew what hit him! Oh, wait, he probably did, because after I sent him that gay porn clip, a new message popped up on the screen, depicting the words _"You've just been HAD!" _Below those words was a black-and-white smiley face picture, winking at Light and sticking out his tongue at him. What's the significance of this, you ask? Well . . . Mr. Smiley Face had a Phantom of the Opera mask on.

* * *

_My heroes had the heart to lose their lives out on a limb  
And all I remember is thinking, I want to be like them  
Ever since I was little, ever since I was little it looked like fun  
And it's no coincidence I've come  
And I can die when I'm done_

_Maybe I'm crazy_  
_Maybe you're crazy_  
_Maybe we're crazy_  
_Probably_

Gnarls Barkley, **"Crazy"**

* * *

A/N - For those of you who didn't notice . . . South Park, When a Stranger Calls, a random car commercial, dan cummins, Kite Runner, and L: File No. 15 (Which, I believe can be found in the Japanese edition of the book L: Change the World) reference

**Sen's Playlist:**

**People are People - Depeche Mode**

**Axel F - Arnold Faltermeyer**

**Crazy - Gnarls Barkley**

**Shut Me Up - Mindless Self Indulgence**

**Resident Evil Movie Soundtrack 2008 Jointo Vicz Mix - Marilyn Manson**

**Somebody's Watching Me - Rockwell**

**I'm Too Sexy for My Shirt - Right Said Fred **(A/N - Just because I just HAVE TO! XD)


	18. I Loathe You, Sometimes

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic**.

* * *

_"Ingenuity inspired their dreams, and insanity gave them the courage to pursue them."_

_**Monster High (2010)**_, Lisa Harrison, pg. 61

* * *

**Vision 40: A Warning**

"I have repeatedly reviewed the audio and video recordings from the past five days on both families." L announced.

The six of us members of the Kira Task Force were gathered around a table that stood in our hotel room. Black tea was served, and a box of fine chocolates stood open on L's end of the table, for his use. I sat on L's left, on the arm of the chair that he was currently sitting. On our right sat Matsuda and Mr. Yagami. To our left: Aizawa and Monkeybone. All of them looked worn down and weary (except for Ukita, who, unlike the other three, wasn't made to work himself into the ground and forced to stay up late nights, occasionally having to skip a shower or a tooth brushing), Mr. Yagami even more so than the others. I glanced at his haggard face, looked at the stubble growing on his chin, looked at his hair, which had gotten a little messy during the past couple of days of late-night watching. I noticed faint drops of sweat trickling down his face. He was anxious.

I looked around at the rest of the guys. Both Aizawa and Matsuda had stubble growing on their chins as well, and also had their ties loosened a tad, for comfort. Ukita was the only one in the room who still had his business jacket on.

Me, I wore a pair of black fishnet arm warmers. They descended down from my elbows, and cut off at the wrists, mostly. A strip of the cross-hatched material tapered from my wrists to my middle finger, secured to it in a loop with thickly woven strands of thread. Looking at it, you would have thought it was a glove of some sort, but since it didn't actually cover the palm of my hand, I suppose it didn't count. I accompanied these awesome threads with a simple black tank top and pants. On the upper part of my left arm, I wore a black leather band studded with silver spikes. I wore a silver belt with a black buckle, and a pair of lace-up black combat boots that had silver buckles strapped around and attached to the sides of my calves. Around my neck I wore a really old silver necklace my dad bought me years ago . . . years ago . . .

"Regarding the existence of suspicious activities within those under surveillance . . ."

Dramatic pause . . .

"There is no reason to suspect either." I thought I caught a faint hint of a groan at the end of that sentence, sort of like a kid who's been forced to go to bed early, or has been told to do his homework when all he wanted to do was play video games.

I groaned myself, and fell back against L in exasperation, letting my head rest on his shoulder. I had one hand gripping the back of his chair in an attempt to alleviate some of my weight from him, so I wouldn't end up accidentally knocking him out of his seat.

_'Wonderful.'_ I thought, sarcastic.

Mr. Yagami let out a huge sigh of relief, his shoulders sagging from the sudden relieved tension.

L popped a chocolate in his mouth. "We will remove the wiretaps." He said, chewing.

Matsuda Babyface sighed. "All that, and we still don't have any suspects."

"And I thought "People who Raye investigated" was a good lead . . ." Monkeybone huffed.

"There was no trace of any member of these two familes in the security footage from Shinjuku either " Aizawa noted.

"That's okay, we'll just have to pursue other leads" Mr. Yagami said, sitting up and pushing his glasses up, all business once again, with a hint of consoling tenderness. "Let's go over the list of suspects one more time."

"Mmm, please don't get the wrong idea." L said through another piece of chocolate.

"Huh ? !" The Chief did a double take, his face the perfect picture of shock.

I grimaced. Yeah, it's not over sir. Not by a long shot.

L licked a bit of chocolate off his finger. "I only said we weren't able to reveal any suspicious activity based only on the tapes. Even if Kira was among them, I'm sure he wouldn't make it obvious." I lifted my head and turned to look at him. "No, in fact, it could mean he was able to continue killing without doing anything outwardly suspicous, sending the criminals quietly to their graves."

". . . You still believe that Kira is in one of those families then?" Mr. Yagami asked tentatively, his face inquisitive, but his voice sounding to me like he was a little afraid to know the answer.

"As I've said . . ." L answered, his expression deadpan. He had picked up his tea and started stirring in the copious amounts of sugar cubes that he'd added recently. He turned his eyes towards the Chief, and continued.

"There's a 5% chance."

I wacked L in the back of the head. "L! Be honest!" I chastised, "Or at least give a straight answer for once, DAMN!" I let myself fall back against his shoulder again, pressing my face against his shirt.

". . . That _was _a straight answer." L responded lowly, the subtlest trace of irritation lacing his words. I let a secret smile curl up one side of my mouth. I pissed him off again! YES!

"If wiring up the houses doesn't work, we'll just have to investigate in person" Matsuda said, bringing his hand to his mouth as he thought this out.

"But if we actually run into Kira and speak to him, we'll die!" Aizawa protested.

True that.

"That's why we have to do what L . . . I mean, _Ryuuzaki _did." Matsuda was still trying to catch on with the nicknames. "Investigate without showing our face."

_'And how do you propose to do that, pray tell?' _I thought, _'Whom do you plan to send, because I'm sure at this point in the game you're gonna blow this whole thing up real good . . .'_

_'Seriously, how do plan on doing that?'_

L didn't respond, his owlish eyes intently focused on his tea . . . which he was still stirring.

"Kira will catch us sooner or later even if we do that!" Aizawa asserted.

_'Not that it was an entirely bad idea . . .'_

"If personal investigations are the only option, we must be prepared to make them." Mr. Yagami spoke solemnly.

Seriously? Doesn't anybody have any better ideas? Or any in-depth ideas?

L paused in his stirring, continued to stare at his drink, and didn't make a single move, not even a muscle spasm.

_'Kira never stopped killing people even while under heavy surveillance.' _L thought. _'I wonder how he actually does it . . . even if he could kill someone by merely wishing it, you'd think that any __human being would show at least some emotion, some sign that they were knowingly committing an act of murder.'_

If he has been showing any of these signs, it's quite possible that he's been doing it _outside _the house, ever thought of that, L? But, then again, Kira-Raito kun is "childish", so he'd probably be itching to rub his victory in L's face, in which case, when he was within range of the cameras, he should have indeed shown some sign, a slip of the tongue perhaps, or a particularly dark look. Unfortunately, so far as I know, all the tapes got was Light-o's mocking derision of the "fifteen hundred investigators in Japan" broadcast. Didn't seem to be enough proof by itself.

_'Many criminals died just as their identities were revealed.' _L continued. _'At those times, everyone in both families acted naturally. '_

_'"Kira is not one of them" would be the "normal" conclusion one would draw. However, if he _is _one of these people we've been watching, we'd have to assume that his psyche, his willpower, has reached god-like proportions. Being able to kill evildoers without blinking an eye . . . completely emotionless . . .'_

By this time, L had placed his spoon down on the small dish in front of him. His left hand rested on his knee as he continued to ponder his teacup. I took the opportunity to slip my hand under his, lace his fingers in mine, and clasp it firmly.

I agree with the emotionless part, but Godlike? No.

_'. . . Maybe there is no "Kira", but only judgments doled out from a vengeful God.'_

Wait, what?

I jolted up, and stared at L, dumbstruck.

Almost as if he could sense my thoughts, L immediately backtracked from that idea. _'But what about the F. B. I. agents? Did they die because they angered the God? Even if we don't know anything about the supernatural _(all you need to do is _ask_, L! It's not that hard!) _a God that must know the name and face of a person sounds more like a joke than anything.'_

_'No!' _L decided. _'These aren't acts of God, but someone very childish and immature who wants to _pretend _they're God.'_

_'You believe in God ? !' _I asked mentally, still reeling from shock. What the hell was going on here ? ! I thought you didn't want to have anything to do with the supernatural! I thought you didn't believe in it, that you wouldn't accept it! What's with the sudden turnaround ? !

Hang on, now that I think about it, those last words you said . . . the timbre of it sounded like that of a man trying to convince himself of an idea, to make himself feel better or to steel himself in the present. Like "My wife isn't having an affair" or "My father is dead, he can't hurt me now." Inexplicable deaths having an inexplicable cause . . . this must not exist for L. Everything in the world has a cause and effect, and a reason . . . that must be how L saw the world.

_'Kira must be human!' _L asserted to himself, _'I must catch him!' _He put down his tea.

_'. . . if he is somebody investigated by Raye Penber before December 19th . . .' _He started gnawing at his thumbnail. _'Then he must be in either the Yagami or Satamura family.'_

I vote Yagami!

_'Even if the cameras were to be maintained, I doubt he'll expose himself to us.'_

_'. . . What should I do?' _He wondered. _'It seems like the best method would be for me to get close to him, to know him well enough that he'd admit to me that he was Kira, and show me how he kills . . . Would that even be possible?'_

L removed his thumb from his mouth. "Oh, before I forget, Sen, there's something I need to discuss with you."

I blinked. "Okay."

"You have displayed inappropriate behavior during the past week while we were conducting surveillance on the Kitamura and Yagami households. For this, you will be put on probation for the next two weeks."

"WHAT?"

"You will not be allowed to stay with us while the Task Force is working. You will also not be allowed to enter the Japanese police station. You can go to your rooms, or go outside someplace while the Task Force and I continue the investigaton."

"Bu-but L, that's not fair!" I protested. "Not to mention fucking _stupid_! You do know that I can phase through walls and disable your security equipment, right?"

"Now you're up to three weeks." L answered glibly, "Your supply of Dr. Pepper and other similar drinks will also be confiscated."

"WHAT ? !"

"One must suffer the consequences of his or her actions eventually, Sen-san."

Conse- . . . .? !

"It was a _joke_!" I exclaimed, exasperated. I threw my hands up in the air and let them fall limp to my sides. "They were jokes! Don't you like jokes, L?"

"No."

"I . . . urrgh!" I rubbed at my forehead, frustrated. "Would you relax? You wouldn't have found anything even if I_hadn't _been messing around! I was trying to spice things up a little, make the watching a bit more fun, ya' know? Wasn't it fun L? Didn't you have fun?"

"Four weeks." L said in answer, "Regardless of your intent, you have interfered with an official police investigation. You sidetracked nearly the whole team from their main focus. . ." Did that include yourself? ". . . and quite possibly helped Kira, whoever he is, hide even deeper beneath a blanket of annonymity."

"WHATDYA FUCKIN' MEAN, HELPED HIM HIDE?" I roared. "Didn't you notice the _little notes_ I left on that Yagami brat's back . . .!" I stopped myself short. Crap.

"Uh, sorry Mr. Yagami" I said sheepishly, turning towards the Chief, who was glaring resentfully at me.

Crap, why didn't I dig my own grave while I was at it?

I stumbled over my next few words as I spoke "I, uh, e, well, you . . . I mean, L, come on! Weren't you suspecting Raito too?"

"That is neither here nor there." L responded, "In any case, it'll be good for you to take a break from the sodas for awhile."

I glared sourly at him, gritting my teeth, my fists clenched, my mouth curled down into a snarl.

"If we're talking about physical health here, then why don't we start weaning you off the damn sugar train starting today? After all, _nobody needs sugar to survive_ L-kun. Better yet, how about we make you quit cold turkey?" I all but growled.

"There is no need for that, Sen-san. You see, there's a big difference between you and I. When I consume sugar, it's to help my thinking processes, to keep me alert so that I never miss the smallest details. Your sodas, on the other hand, serve no purpose. They are merely an addiction. Surely you haven't forgotten the other day, when you swallowed at least fifty cans of that Diet Dr. Pepper drink you're so fond of in one sitting?"

I blinked, flashing back:

_I'd been sitting on the couch, surfing on the web on my laptop. A can of Diet Dr. Pepper was in my hand. On the floor, was about twenty or so crushed soda cans._

_Matsuda had peered over my shoulder quizzically, a little concerned. Couldn't blame him. For the past hour, I hadn't been able to stop any single part of my body from twitching or spasming or any kind of movement._

_"Uh, Sen? Don't you think that's enough?" He asked._

_"Me? Nope! Nope! Nope!" I replied popping my p's, my right shoulder jerking up and down in the air with every word I spoke, sort of like I was doing the Thriller dance. Then my left eye started twitching. Dammit! Now, I couldn't focus!_

_My leg was stretched out on the couch. My foot was swinging side to side like a freaking pendulum, so fast that it was nearly a blur. Staring at my twitchy foot, Aizawa said cautiously "Uh, Sen? I think you have a problem."_

_"I DO NOT! That's a lie!" I protested, jittery, shooting my index finger high in the air. "Y-You haven't known me long enough to decide whether or not I have a problem! Be-suh-sides, I can stop any time I want to!"_

_"Really?" Matsuda asked._

_"No, not really, I've just always wanted to say that!" I told him in a perfectly straight voice, before throwing my head back and laughing. After a few moments, I stopped abruptly and swung a pointed finger in Aizawa's direction:_

_"So, why don't you just shut it, Afro Man!"_

_"What?" Aizawa asked, raising an eyebrow and taking a step back._

_"That's your new nickname, Afro Man!" I grinned, and started singing, throwing my fists up into the air and swinging them from side to side "AFRO! AFRO! MAAAAAAAAAN!"_

I blinked once more.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." I deadpanned.

_'It wasn't all in one sitting, anyway.' _I thought, bitterly.

At that moment, Watari came into the room, wiping off his hands with a scrap of white cloth.

"Ah, there you are, Watari." L said. "Have the preparations been made?"

"Yes." Watari answered, stuffing the cloth into one pocket. "Also, you will be pleased to know that every can of carbonated soda has been eradicated from this building."

**"WHAT?"** I did a double take between the two of them, and then dashed out of the room, wanting to check to see if this monstrosity could possibly be true.

**.*.*.*.**

L watched Sen rush out from the corner of his eyes. He looked towards his old benefactor and asked "Watari?"

"Already taken care of, L." Watari said, pulling a pair of earplugs out of his pocket and handing them to L. The detective picked the plugs out of the man's hand in his usual, delicate way, and stuffed them into his ears while Watari did the same. The semi-servant then walked towards the group, holding up a handful of earplugs in offering. Matsuda looked up at Watari questioningly and asked "Uh, Watari? What is this . . ."

At that moment, an ear-shattering scream pierced the room.

_**"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"**_

**.*.*.*.**

After taking a few minutes to collect myself, I stomped back to the living room, my fists clenched at my sides. I was freaking livid, my teeth gritted, damn it I could have _killed_ L right now if I didn't love him so much!

Everyone in the room, excepting L and Watari, was staring at me wide-eyed. Probably not used to seeing this side of my self-proclaimed eccentric personality, but I didn't give a fuck for that at the moment. I stomped my way angrily over to L's chair, catching the little wise-ass detective in the middle of sipping his sugar loaded tea. I stood fuming over him as he nonchalantly swallowed that gulp of tea, and placed it back down onto the saucer that he held in his other hand.

"Yes?" He asked casually.

I growled, letting out a huff of air from my nose and through my clenched teeth. I forced myself to relax, and somehow managed to coerce my hands to let go and loosen up, only to have them curl up again about a minute later.

"I~~~'m gonna getcha L." I said lowly, "I'm gonna get ya _sooooooooo_ (bit of a high pitched falsetto here) bad! Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but _**soon**_ . . ." I let out another burst of agravated breath, something between a growl and a sigh. ". . . As soon as we can get you into that damned school . . . grrrrr . . ." I turned on my heel and went to the side closet, where I started digging for my favorite black leather jacket.

Okay, maybe I wouldn't really get him back for this . . . _now_. Honestly, I was fine as long as I could get my soda from somewhere . . . but if I couldn't get my fix within at least thirty minutes, then god damn! Everybody was in trouble.

I ripped off my arm band and shoved my hand through one sleeve of the jacket, then turned around and stalked over to L while I flung a warning finger in his direction.

"You'll learn L . . . nobody, and I mean _nobody_ . . . messes with my favorite alcoholic beverage."

"Where are you going?" Aizawa asked, not sure what to make of this.

"To the store, whataya think ? !" I asked, turning to the door and shoving my other arm into my jacket. I latched my arm band back on over one leather-clad sleeve, flung the door open and slammed it as hard as I could (without breaking the foundations) on my way out.

Wait, had I seen L smile a little back there? I was so fucking pissed off I hadn't really noticed much, but . . . was he . . . Oh my _god, _the symptoms were getting WORSE!

**.*.*.*.**

_A week later; Idaho, USA._

"Miss, can you tell me why you're up here?" Some policeman dude asked.

I was sitting on top of a billboard somewhere within the great Potato State of these United States of What the Fuck Ever! My legs were crossed, my right swinging back and forth in the air while I grumpily sipped at my drink. There were a couple of cop cars around the area, and the police guy who had previously spoken earlier was talking to me from a ladder that leaned up against my billboard.

"Gee, I don't know" I said, sardonically, "maybe it's because my so-called _"friend"_ keeps JACKIN' MY DRINK!" I uncrossed my legs and angrily shoved the poor innocent cop off the billboard with my boot. Don't worry, he'll live. The soda situation, however, was freaking MADNESS! For the past 168 hours and 32 minutes, I've been trying, and _trying_, to smuggle in some of my carbonated goodness into the Kira Task Force Headquarters, only to find the damn things surreptiously gone missing within at least three hours! I tried to compensate, and have my sugar fix satiated at one of the local restaurants, but _somehow_, at every single mother-fucking eatery place that I went to, the establishment had either recently sold out, or had been given express orders not to serve me any soda of any kind _whatso-fucking-ever_!

Ugggh, you should have _seen_ that smug look on that mother-freakin' Venus-waitress-with-a-short temper's-face! Why the hell hadn't I tossed her through a window when I had the chance? Oh right, because it wasn't her fault, she was following orders. From who? Her manager, who got these orders from _who?_ . . . WELL TAKE A MIGHTY MOTHERFUCKING GOOD GUESS, YOU RETARDS!

Ugh, I . . . damn! This whole thing was driving me up against the wall! No matter where I went, in the entire state/country of Japan, I kept running into the same damn thing! Don't know how he did it, but somehow L managed to cut me completely off! He soda-blocked me! (That sounded a lot funnier in my head . . . I'm not a pervert, am I?) Given this, I had to figure out how I could compromise with this situation: L was bugged because I kept messing around with Light-o "Suck My Dick" and the Kira Investigation. So, maybe he wouldn't mind if I partook in my soda, if it was somewhere _really far away_ . . . As you can see, it worked.

HOW DOES THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FREAKIN' WORLD SOUND TO YA, L? !

Don't get me wrong, I'm not holding this too personally against L . . . well, maybe a little. Just a tad. A little smidge. But hell, couldn't hate the guy even if I wanted to. In a few more weeks this whole episode would blow over somehow, anyway.

That being said . . .

"Now lemme alone, allah youz Captain American people!" I yelled at the good people down below, "I came here to _enjoy_ my carbonated beverage, and I will be doing it in PEACE goddammit!"

*sip*

* * *

**Vision 41: On L's Sexuality**

I can't really place at what time this one took place. Sometime after the Great Soda Incident, I'm sure. The whole Task Force was gone out somewhere, and L and I were the only ones in the living room. L was typing on his computer, peering intently at the screen. I was crouched down in front of him, my arms wrapped around my knees, staring at him with the same amount of fascination that he seemed to exhibit towards the computer.

A couple minutes of the clitter-clacking of keys later, I asked "So, what are you?"

L looked at me briefly, and turned his attention back to the fluorescent screen.

A pause.

". . . Are you gay?" I asked. This, I _had _to know!

No answer.

"Are you straight?" I asked instead. And, if so, is there any reason that I should hold back on the mondo-hugging sessions for awhile?

No answer.

"Bi?" I asked next, getting a little impatient.

No answer.

"Asexual?" I asked, exasperated.

No answer . . . _AGAIN!_

"Goddammit, L!" I yelled, throwing my hands up in the air. "Would you at least _blink _or something?"

My little pale doll looked up from his computer. He looked me straight in the eye . . . and blinked.

Once.

_Slowly_ . . .

Then went back to work.

"AGH!"

I give up! I fell backwards, letting my legs swing up in the air and collapse to the ground in a heap. I grabbed at my face and hair in frustration.

"Why is it so important for you to know my sexual preferences?" L asked, off-hand.

That _is _to say if you have any to speak of!

"I'm curious." I answered, pulling my head up from the ground and looking at him. "I mean, hell, you _are_human, L-kun. You gotta be attracted to _something_ . . . BESIDES SWEETS." Which makes me think . . . wait, what if . . . NO! NO! Nuh-uh! No way! No fucking way is L attracted to animals! That is WAY too fucking off the charts! Or . . . oohhh, _I see dead people _. . .

"I'd ask what you're thinking about, but I have a feeling I wouldn't want to know." L sighed, still typing.

What, did my insanity have its' own pulse?

"Sorry, L . . . it's just, after all those fan-fics, I can't help but wonder . . ."

""Fan-fics"?" L paused, looking back at me once again.

"Oh . . . yeah, you don't know. This whole thing you have going between you and Kira is just a story somewhere else, in other universe _which I won't name_. You've got a pretty massive fanbase. A good chunk of those guys take their turns making their own spin on the story, whether it's self-insertion or something completely different."

"From what I've seen, the romance section of the site seems to be doing pretty well for itself. They've got you paired up with a lot of different people."

"Like who?" L asked, curious in spite of himself.

"Like . . . uh . . . well . . . you . . ." Kira, Misa, OC's (both male and female), Naomi, Near, Mello, BB . . . Actually, on second thought:

"You don't wanna know."

L raised an eyebrow.

After a period of silence, he asked "How many of these "fans" think I'm gay?"

I flinched, crossed my arms in front of my chest, and sat up Indian Style.

"Too many." I answered. "It doesn't stop at romance either."

"If not there, then where?" He asked.

"It . . ." I stopped again. I thought about all the doujinshii, fanfiction and other whatnot that I had read in the past. A lot of them . . . were pretty explicit. A flush threatened to creep up my cheeks at the memory of a certain yaoi fanfic that I'd read . . . too recently . . .

"You don't want to know." I spoke bluntly.

L's expression looked pretty skeptical for nearly half a second, but then reverted back to his usual blank look.

He went back to work on his comp, saying off-handedly: "If it's only sex, then it shouldn't be that bad. I've seen worse."

I'd better not be blushing right now!

"Perhaps, but then you've never been part of any of it" I said, "And so I'll tell you again, _you don't want to know._"

"But if this is fiction, then what is the difference between you telling me, and you not telling me?" He asked.

"Your soul." I responded.

I wonder if it's possible to rape a man using only mere words . . . You know what, I don't wanna test that.

Hold on a second, did I just see L _**ROLL HIS EYES**__?_

* * *

**Vision 42: A Questionable Choice (In Past Times)**

"You work too much!" I said.

"Don't you have anything you like to do . . . you know, to _relax_?" I asked.

"Come on, everybody needs a hobby L-kun . . . why don't you find one?" I suggested.

WHAT was I **THINKING**?

Uggh . . . okay, okay . . . so, what happened was . . . don't know how, don't know _what-the-fuck_ why, but somehow L developed a vested interest in the one and only _Misa _**freaking **_Amane_. Or should I say "Misa-Misa" freaking Amane? Yeah, yeah, we get the pun people! _Let's move on, please!_

I stood behind L, who was sitting on the couch in his usual quirky pose, chewing on a thumb nail while he watched "Misa's Happy Sweets". I loomed over him, growling, snarling, my arms folded across my chest, my nails digging into my skin while I watched him watch the show.

When I was sure that I wouldn't bite his head off by accident, I said, feeling rather cross:

"You know, when I suggested that you take up a hobby L-kun, this wasn't what I had in mind."

"She's pretty." L answered simply, not taking his eyes off the screen.

"BULL-_**SHIT**_ SHE IS!" I exploded. I gave a stuttering exhale, forcing my anger inside a little black box in my head. I took a calming breath, and gestured to the screen. "I mean, look at her! That woman's an _embarrassment _to all Gothica! Have you ever heard of a "blonde" goth girl? No! If you have, I'm willing to bet that she wears a lot of black eyeliner, shadow and lipstick! And let's not forget this whole "cute little girl" theme she has going on! _When _have you ever heard the words "Cute" and "Goth" in the same sentence? ! I'll tell you when: NEVER!"

"Misa-Misa is an unconventional woman." L spoke. I winced.

_'You're calling her "Misa-Misa"?' _I wondered, _'Ohhh, _BARF!_'_

"It's not fair to judge her because she is different. This is her way of expressing herself." L went on smoothly, "Also, I believe the style is called "Gothic-Lolita"

"I am ashamed that you know that." I answered, peering down condescendingly on him.

"And what the hell is Misa doing on the Food Network, anyway?" I asked, gesturing wildly at the screen again. "I thought she was a model, actor, singer-type chick!"

"Singing is not her main focus at the moment, and she won't be committing herself to a new album for a year at least; Her next shoot won't be for at least another two to three months, and her manager is still haggling Nishinaka to fit Miss Amane into his script for his next film." L rattled off.

"Urggh!" I growled lowly, making my nails dig even deeper into my skin. Somehow, I'd hadn't drawn blood yet. "Well isn't _she _a jack of all trades ? ! Ugggh! This is so fucking stupid!"

"Sen . . . if I didn't know any better, I'd say that you were jealous" L tilted his head back, removing his thumb from his mouth to look at me, a vacuous expression on his face.

"_**WHAT ?**_ !" I raged, unlacing my arms and swinging them down by my sides, where my fists tightened into hard little balls. "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME? _**JEALOUS**__? _ME? OF THAT SPINELESS LITTLE TWAT ? ! I'D SOONER . . . Wait a minute, _are you enjoying this ? !_"

"Not at all." L responded flippantly, turning back to the television.

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Alright, either you've lost your fucking mind, or I'm going to have to hit you later . . . _hard._"

"You won't." L said, unconcerned . . . and biting on his thumbnail again.

I glared at him, and gritted my teeth in anger for what must have been the tenth time in the past hour.

"Shut up." I retorted finally.

I crossed my arms again, even as I felt the distinct impression that I was going onto the defensive . . . _again_, which was a strange thing in itself.

I tilted my head, and let an exasperated puff of air out through my nostrils. I then sighed heavily, and said "I just don't get it. Why her? Couldn't you have . . . I don't know, started playing board games, RPG's, or go running off to Comic Convention in Dakota like most nerds? What the hell is so fucking appeal-. . ." I broke off, finally starting to pay attention to the actual show. Misa was pulling a dark-colored chocolate cake out of the oven.

"Well! There we are!" She exclaimed happily, carefree. "The perfect cake for chocolate lovers everywhere! Just put on whatever topping you like, and you're all done! _Oh! _But remember" She put a finger to her lips, and continued in a playfully hushed tone, "Don't tell my boyfriend that I told you about this great secret! He'd get _sooooo _mad!"

I grimaced, snarling even more then I had before.

"You know what, never mind." I droned, annoyed.

* * *

**A/N - Links for pictures of Sen's Leather Jacket, Combat Boots, and Fishnet Arm Warmers can be found on my profile**

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Niggas in Paris - Kanye West & Jay-Z**

**Doll Dagga Buzz Buzz Ziggety Zag - Marilyn Manson**

**Welcome to the Jungle - Guns n' Roses**

**Paint it Black - Vanessa Carlton**

**Lords of Salem - Rob Zombie**


	19. Heaven's a Lie

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic**.

**Disclaimer: The following song is called Heaven's a Lie. It was written and sung by Lacuna Coil, and I do not own it.**

* * *

**Vision 43: Heaven's a Lie**

The skies are tinted purple, shrouded in black clouds. I'm not sure where I am, teetering on the top of a nameless, pretty freakin' tall building. But this is the theatrics, since when have I ever cared about the specifics, so long as it looked cool?

My eyes are closed. I'm wearing a black trenchcoat, black jeans, and black combat boots.

I've let my hair down today.

Buffeted by the high winds, each gale feeling like a coarse punch meant to send me sailing off and down unto the flashing lights below, my pretty little Christmas lights . . . just like home.

I wonder what my thing was with the big cities now. Maybe it had something to do with the heights . . . I like being high.

It smells like rain. Freshly poured rain. Sweet, with just a little chill . . . I consider my place in this world, how I affect, how should I affect it, should I even choose to do anything at all. I hesitate, I start, I stop. As a creature driven entirely by emotion, I could potentially turn this whole place into the next Twilight Zone. But I go on, I digress. I repeat myself, I remind myself, and then at some point I forget. Sometimes it feels like it hardly even matters anymore. Sometimes it feels like all I really care about is my own pleasure.

Is this what having near God like powers has done to me?

And then a second voice asks: "Who even cares?"

I raise my right hand slowly up into the air. I catch the charge of a passing lightning bolt as it strikes down to Earth. I can feel the energy tingling in my hand, kind of tickling me as the minuscule bundles of electricity explode against my hand, tiny little pin pricks of pleasure.

If I focused, I could probably use the electromagnetic forces in the electricity and draw the entire lightning bolt into my hand. I could pretend to be Zeus. Wouldn't that be fun? Ah, but wait, lightning probably doesn't work that way.

The little pops and pricks begin to fade, and are replaced by a slow burn, growing hotter and hotter in steady increments.

I open my eyes, and look at the bolt in my hand.

I guess it's a good thing the rules of logic don't apply to me.

I toss the bolt down to Earth, not giving a damn to where it landed.

After all, why should I care?

It doesn't matter . . .

. . . Nothing matters.

_.*.*.*._

I can feel my eyes burning. Maybe not so much of a burn as a . . . surge of energy. They do that sometimes. Whenever it happens, I assume my eyes are lighting up. I've been told that my eyes turn into two bright white balls of flame whenever a feel a strong emotion, or whenever I'm using a lot of power, or whenever I'm feeling dramatic.

I like it. I think it's pretty cool.

I close my eyes again, and take a deep breath of the night air as I listen to somebody screaming, somebody falling, somebody crying out for help, listening to somebody's bones crack . . . and the faces, so many faces. Faces twisted into agony, faces torn and shredded and destroyed beyond repair or recognition. Crying faces, frightened faces, delighted faces, manically delighted faces.

_Oh no,_

_Here it is again_

I wonder if the Gods of old demanded sacrifice, not because of the blood, the bones, the flesh, or the worship . . . but because they thought it was amusing. It kind of makes sense, really, and I'm hardly the first one to think of it. I mean, come on, Gods can do anything. We don't have problems. Unfortunately, the downside of having no problems, is that we can get incredibly bored. We're not all wise, mature and content. We're not all Fathers. In fact, a lot of us are pretty childish.

So we watch you dance around in your little worlds, falling down and coming apart, then picking yourselves up again to start a new craze. A lot of things stay the same, but if you look closely, bit by bit, new wonderful things come into play.

"All the world's a stage,  
And all the men and women merely players;  
They have their exits and their entrances,  
And one man in his time plays many parts"

_I need to know_

_When I will fall in decay_

'But wait' I "protest," 'I am not a God. I have never been a God, and may our Father help the man/person/_**thing **_that tries to make me one.'

I laugh under my breath.

Yeah, you're not a God . . . of course you're not.

_Something wrong_

_With every plan of my life_

Come to think of it, have you ever considered that the reason that it sometimes feels like there's no God . . . is because after God made you, he left? Yes, I can see him right now, sitting back in his easy chair, watching our cosmos make and destroy itself as it will. It might collapse, and we may disappear.

But who really gives a fuck, right, after all, you're not gonna live long enough to see it!

_I didn't really notice that you've been here_

Don't take my word for it though. I wasn't there during the Big Bang . . . at least I don't think I was . . .

. . . No, I wasn't.

I don't know what God does in his/her/it's spare time. I don't know what he looks like, not really (that I can remember, anyway). I don't know what he does with a world once he's done making it. What I do know . . . is what a child does when he feels neglected.

_Dolefully desired . . ._

He starts acting out.

_Destiny of a lie_

Enter Light Yagami.

_Set me free_  
_Your heaven's a lie_

I see him there: black, against a red background. Those stupid, stupid, mocking red, shining eyes attempting, yes, ATTEMPTING to glare holes in me.

He hates me. Good. He should.

He smirks. I can see his damned pearly whites twelve feet away. He can take me . . . heh, yeah, no he can't!

_Set me free with your love_  
_Set me free, yeah_

I grit my teeth. "Where do you get off, Yagami?" I ask. "I mean, "Becoming the God of a New World"? What the ever-loving fuck! I can understand wanting to help people, I can understand wanting to quell your inner demons, after all, this world can be the most bat-freaking-shit INSANE with all it's cruel logic, a good chunk of which most of us mere mortals have yet to even fucking discover OR comprehend!"

_Set me free_

_Your Heaven's a Lie_

_Set me free with your love,_

_Set me free, yeah . . ._

"You want to become God? You want to become the Messiah?" I'm yelling myself hoarse now, gnashing my teeth as I continue "FUCK THAT! I think you want to become a damn tyrant! But why . . . why do you seek to rule the world? Why can't you be satisfied with saving people? Do you think some people are born with evil in them? Do you think that these poor good people are incapable of functioning once all the baddies are gone?

"Oh, where has the rapist gone? Huh, oh that's weird, that damn cannibal's stopped eating me, the machine's stopped, my arms are no longer being pulled out of my sockets; that damn cheating, alcoholic, bipolar bastard of a husband of mine has stopped beating on my door, doesn't he want my child?

"Do you expect them to follow you once they know all the supposed "good" that you've done?

". . . God damn it, listen to me when I'm talking to you! _**ANSWER ME!**_"

He doesn't respond. He sees my anger, revels in it, in my frustration. I wanna understand him, and at the same time I wanna toss him out in the garbage. He's an asshole. Assholes are assholes for the sole purpose of being an asshole.

My fist clenches and shakes a little as I catch a glance from him that clearly reads "Oh, you poor, short-sighted fool. If only you could understand the wondrous things I have in store . . ."

_Oh no,_  
_Here it is again_  
_I need to know_  
_Why did I choose to betray you_

Is killing bad people really such a bad thing? Even if you didn't do it in self defense, or in defense of others? Hell, Dexter Morgan kills people, and I still like him! John Kramer kills people (technically), and I still like him! And Freddy, good old Freddy . . . WHY AM I STILL ASKING MYSELF THIS QUESTION, I THOUGHT I HAD IT ANSWERED BY NOW!

. . . I just don't understand it. You put people on Death Row for a million years, and after that you sit them in the electric chair or shoot 'em up with euthanasia. What gives people the right to decide who lives or dies?

Okay, okay . . . so, there are some people that don't deserve to live. There are people who shouldn't be alive. Why? Probably because they killed a shit-load of people, or caused a shit-load of deaths, or maybe because . . . um, well, a little tiny something called INSANITY!

But Hell, I don't know how the system works. Never really bothered with it, especially since I could tap-dance around whatever policy they had, but . . .

_Something wrong_  
_With all the plans of my life_

Why did I hate Light so much? He killed L, or is going to kill L if I don't do something, yeah sure, but what else was there? Let's see: He's a hypocrite, he uses people, I'm pretty damn sure that somewhere along the way he lost his heart and compassion and just started using all the lives he saved as an excuse to keep on going because he can't face the face the fact that he, the perfect son, was doing something wrong; he set out to create a whole new world, a perfect world, with the best and the worst of intentions.

_I didn't realize that you've been here_

I was angry at him. Angry because I didn't want to hate him. Angry because I didn't _not _want to hate him. Angry because he couldn't see how fucked up he was, and hating him for all the wrong that he would do in the name of Righteousness, the stuck up little prick! What was I thinking, the man crossed the Point of No Return a long time ago, and he sure as hell didn't want to go back, no matter the reason or the cost!

_Dolefully desired_  
_Destiny of a lie_

I wish these people would wake up. "Don't believe his eyes!" I scream, "He's a liar! He's a monster hiding behind a porcelain mask!" They won't believe me. A good number of them _choose _not to believe me. A couple of Bible-humping Japanese people pelted me with my own merchandise once: CDs, rolled up posters, DVDs, and a couple of silver knuckles . . . ow. They called me a "false prophet" . . . fucking zealots.

_Set me free_  
_Your heaven's a lie_  
_Set me free with your love_  
_Set me free, yeah_

It's not as if I couldn't get where they were coming from. A lot of people where hurt by the people Light killed. Now there's a poetic line, "The people LIGHT killed" . . . But can't they realize he's human? That whoever is killing all these people, with supernatural powers no less, is not incorruptible? Lord knows the justice system isn't perfect, there are plenty of cracks and kinks that need to be worked out, not to mention the number of people who have trained themselves to become excellent liars.

Heck, this is probably the reason why some people had a problem with Batman. He could slip in and out, and nobody'd notice. He uses the police as much as he helps them . . . but he's a good person. You know that, I know that, but that's only because the media allows us to enter his world. If we didn't know him any better, looking at all the freaks he goes up against on a regular basis, we'd start to get a little worried. After all, any normal person would have to crack eventually, and once that happens . . . then what?

_Set me free_

_Your Heaven's a Lie_

_Set me free with your love_

_Set me free, yeah_

Bats is not one of those people. Light _claims _to not be one of those people. But I don't believe him. Not after all he's done, not after knowing all the things he will do, what he's capable of. I wonder how many people would stay by his side, if they knew the things he'd done, if they fully understood him . . .

Whatever love Light gets from this point on, he doesn't deserve it. He takes it all for granted, anyway.

_Dolefully desired_

In this vast sea of black earth, Light and I stand alone. The ground quakes.

_Set me free_  
_Your heaven's a lie_

I turn around, startled.

_Set me free with your love_  
_Set me free, yeah_

The ground cracks open, a hellish light seeps through. A huge black . . . _something,_ crawls out from it's bowels, long black tentacles flailing in the air.

"FUCK!" I yelled.

_Set me free_

_Your Heaven's a Lie_

_Set me free with your love_

_Set me free, yeah_

I chuck white fireballs at the thing, trying to destroy it. Not even a scratch. One tentacle grabs me, and hoists me up into the air. I squirm, trying to get free. Damn, this thing is tight . . .

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice Light being chased by one of the tentacles. It caught up with him, wrapped itself around Light's waist, and hoisted him up into the air. He had better luck escaping, managing to squirm out of the death grip before it was too late, and jump down to the ground. He tried to run, but he ended up getting caught again, and crushed. With a roar, I swing my arm back, powering up another fireball, but I never get the chance to release it.

. . .

_Set me free_

_Your Heaven's a Lie_

_Set me free with your love_

_Set me free, yeah_

. . . It hurts. My insides are boiling, my . . . everything's on fire . . . Crap! Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! AAAGGGH!

I can't see. I can only feel. I feel anger. I feel trapped. I feel like I'm in the Fires of Hell again.

And then I feel . . . nothing.

.*.*.*.

"Aaaand, blackout" I finish, pressing a button on my remote to stop the video. I was sitting in a black chair, my legs crossed, and my left elbow propped on one of the arms of the chair. Next to me was a large circular table. Around it sat men in business suits: the guys who were helping me distribute my music video; plus a couple of geeks in casual wear, whose names I forget every now and again, who helped me make the damn thing.

One of the men, some dude with slicked back hair and glasses, spoke.

"Very . . . well done, Miss Boulibashi."

"Sen." I interrupted.

"Uh, yes, Sen . . ." the man acquiesced grudgingly. "Well done, except . . . I don't really understand it."

I turn my gaze from the blank screen to the awkward little man speaking to me.

"This video . . . doesn't really give any kind of story. It doesn't begin, it doesn't end."

"It begins." I assured him. "It ends."

"W-Well, alright, but . . . watching this video, all I'm feeling is . . . emotion. I feel the anger, the repression, the frustration and . . . that ending, why use that at the end of an Anti-Kira video?"

I turned back to the blank screen.

"Reality check" I replied. "Cute thing about being human . . . eventually we all find something that takes us down a good six feet."

"Okaaay . . . but . . ." Glasses went on, still sounding as confused as Hell. "That still doesn't make sense to me . . . are you expecting to . . . well, _die _soon? I-I mean, if you'll forgive me for being d-direct, uh, crass, um . . ." He tripped over himself a little when I turned my glance towards him again.

I leaned back into my chair, turning away from Glasses again to stare off into space. (Why did I hire him again? Was I looking for some wimp to pick on to make myself feel all-powerful?)

"I'm not gonna die." I answered. I can't die; and every time I _do "_die" I always find some inexplicable way to come back, even if it takes me a hundred years to do it.

"I told you, it's a Reality Check. Plus . . ." I breathed out a sigh. "The thing about great villains is that they always leave something behind; or, they never really die because they've got a butt-load full of fanpeople or Major Chief Haters on their side. Why do you think the Saw series kept going? Why does Freddy and Jason keep coming back? Why doesn't anybody shut up about Hitler being the scourge to mankind despite the contributions he made?"

I uncrossed my legs and pushed myself up out of my chair. "My point is, that even if Kira, by some miracle, ended up dying within the next six months . . . or at the very least drops his murder weapon and crawls back to the drawing board beneath his basement to think up _another_ World Peace plan . . ." I rolled my eyes.

"Better yet, one might consider counselling . . ." I scratched my head. "Anyway, my point is that Kira made an impression . . . _if you guys haven't already noticed_" I glared at them all, my annoyance getting the better of me for a moment, then I shook it off and continued "If we're not smart in how we get rid of this guy, if we don't expose him for the asshole that he is, eventually someone's gonna take his place, and let me tell ya, the successors aren't nearly as "unbiased" and "kind" as our current Lord and Master, Darth Suck-My-Dick." I rolled my eyes and gritted my teeth, then I turned and started pacing up and around the room in a huff, thinking.

After a few seconds I abruptly turned to face the room, rather frivolously saying "And of course by all the "we's" I just put into that paragraph, I mean "me" 'cause CLEARLY, I am alone here!"

I caught them all looking uneasily at one another out of the corners of their eyes before I started circling the room again.

"So as far as anything goes" I said on the second trip around the Round Table of Media Men, "Take this home, watch it again, tell me what I need to fix, and I'll get right on it. Just don't ask me to change anything that messes with the main themes that me and my geeks . . . AND I MEAN THAT IN THE MOST POSITIVE WAY POSSIBLE!" I interrupted myself quickly, throwing my hands up in defense against said geeks who were throwing me annoyed Death Glares. ". . . Have set up: Kira's an ass, he needs to die or go home, we are all human and will be destroyed at some point, I need someone to piss at and . . ." I dropped my hands to my sides and looked at the ceiling.

"I need to get this guy out of my head . . ." I groaned, shaking my head. "Ugh"

I sighed again. Then, I perked back up and snatched my keys from the table. "Well, see ya douches later!" I called out cheerfully over my shoulder. I waved them goodbye, then skipped out the door.

.*.*.*.

The good thing about having everyone around you thinking you're bat-shit crazy . . . is that you don't have complete strangers come up to you ask what's wrong. Heck, except for Mr. Yagami, the members of the Kira Task Force barely talk to me at all! However, Mr. Yagami and I never talk about _my _personal issues (not for his lack of trying). Mostly, our talks are focused on him, with bits and pieces of my old life thrown in, from before I became . . . whatever the hell I am. Watari, in his infinite wisdom, leaves me alone. He figures that eventually, I'm gonna need somebody to talk to, so he's just waiting for me to crack.

And L . . .

. . .

. . .

. . .

He makes a great teddy bear.


	20. Can't Sleep

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic**.

* * *

_"Hypothetically . . . What would you do if you had the ability to kill people by just thinking it?"_

_"Huh ! ?"_

_"If it was me, I'd probably start killing off all the guys in my way . . ."_

_"WHA ! ?"_

_"Then, so that nobody could suspect me, I'd kill a lot of people that had nothing to do with me. And if somebody suspected me of the killings, then of course I'd kill them . . . Kill all the detectives I guess . . ."_

_". . . If I had that ability . . . I'd kill all the people whom I thought the world would be better without and create a world of peace with just people who had kind hearts."_

_". . . I see. But that would probably mean you'd have to kill the majority of mankind."_

_**Death Note**, Chapter 0: Pilot_; Inspector Yamanaka and Detective Takagi

* * *

_"Every life is sacred."_

_"Oh, talk to me, don't quote me bumper stickers!"_

_"It's true."_

_"It's meaningless!"_

_"It means every life matters to God."_

_"Not to me, not to you . . . judging by the number of natural disasters, not to God, either."_

_"You're just being argumentative."_

_"Yeah. I do do that. What about Hitler? Is his life sacred to God? Father of your child . . . is his life sacred to you?"_

_"My child isn't Hitler!"_

_"Either every life is sacred, or . . ."_

_"STOP IT! I don't wanna_ chat_ about philosophy."_

_"You're_ not_ killing your rape_ baby _because of a philosophy."_

_". . . It's murder! I'm against it! _You for it?"

_". . . Not as a general rule."_

.*.*.*.

_"The problem with exceptions to rules . . . is the line drawing . . . Might make sense for us to kill the ass that did this to you. Where do we draw the line? Which asses do we get to kill, which asses get to keep on being asses? Nice thing about the abortion debate . . . is we can quibble over trimesters but ultimately there's a nice cold line . . . birth._

_"Morally, it's not a lot of difference. Practically,_ huge!"

**House**;_ Season 3, Episode 12_; House and Eve

* * *

**Vision 44: Light and Lucifer**

It was the middle of the night. I lay in my bed, staring up at the ceiling. Feeling sorry for myself, arguing with myself, debating with myself; drawing out different scenarios revolving around such topics as "What if_ this_ happened?", "What if it's not really like that?"

Another good thing about the supernatural: Depending on what you are, you don't need sleep. To some, it's a luxury. A luxury that I desperately, _desperately _needed, for gosh sakes, I WANTED TO TURN MY BRAIN OFF FOR AWHILE!

I'd been tossing and turning all night, every night for several days now. I'd been trying to decide just what should I let happen, should I _let_ L die? Blasphemous, I know, given all the shit I've done since I got here, and the intentions I had had in coming here, intentions that I _weeks _ago decided were the right course of action. Despite that, I couldn't help but wonder: even if I hated the idea, did his death serve a purpose? Well, now that I'm here, I'm pretty sure that that purpose is quickly disappearing, but . . . Agh, here I go again.

I rolled over onto my left side, resting my head in the crook of my left arm.

I couldn't understand _why_ I was having second thoughts. I couldn't understand why I was suddenly thinking "Well, Light's not a total bastard, now is he? He can't be all bad, right? I mean, yeah, he killed those two cops, but other than that he hasn't done anything terrible, has he? Come on, the guy has barely done anything and you . . . You have to agree with me, the whole Nightmare on Light's Street thing was a bit over the top, don't you think? You might as well kick the cat for no good reason, because that's exactly what you did here . . ."

I turned over to my opposite side, laying my head down onto my other arm. Funny, I used to be afraid of the dark. I couldn't get over it until sometime in my early adulthood . . . I had a pretty active imagination.

Light is evil. At the beginning he was a threat; right now, he's a menace, and soon . . . only that pretty face of his is keeping people from burning him alive. I hate him, I hate what he does to people, I hate the fact that he never EVER feels regret for any of his actions! He got what he deserved, as far as I'm concerned, hell, I was just getting ahead of the game, since ya know that if _**I** _didn't kick his ass, somebody else would!

Urgggggh!

I sighed. There it is again: EVILEVILEVILEVIL. Would you go away for a few seconds ? ! Light may be a douche, but he was human first, wasn't he? There's gotta be a part of him that feels _something _about all this! Hell, you saw his face! You saw the way he reacted when you denigrated his reasons for hanging on to the Death Note, when you attacked his understanding of the weight of his actions for the past several months! Who knows, maybe he doesn't _like _to kill, maybe he just thinks it's necessary . . .

Tch, yeah, and my name is Mary Poppins, _he totally likes it!_ It gives him a huge power trip, that's what gives him an ego the size of the Milky Way, along with his brains and appearance! Besides, aren't we forgetting Lind L. Taylor? Remember, the guy who Light mistook for L and _killed _because he said he was going to hunt him down and throw him in prison, where eventually he would be sentenced to death? He's hardly the kind of guy you need to be feeling sorry for!

Then again, you could think of it as self-defense. You're right, he's still a human being, and most humans usually don't want to die for one reason or another.

Yes, but you're missing the point. Do I need to quote the manga-slash-anime for you? "I am Justice. I protect the innocent and those who fear evil. I am the God placed here to save the weak and create a perfect world that everyone desires. All those who would oppose that God . . . _they _are the ones who are truly evil!" He wasn't defending _himself _he was defending his ego.

Maybe he didn't want to face the fact that there was some evil in what he was doing.

Even if that were true, why are you considering saving him? If he _needs _to be saved . . . if he wants to. Better than that, what makes you think you _can _save him? Unlike you, his drive to see things through to the end is strong. He doesn't doubt himself, he doesn't second-guess every move he makes unless it puts in the direction he wants to go. He's not gonna change his mind. He's gone. Forget him. Trap him. Lock him up. That's all you can do.

I heaved a big sigh. I closed my eyes, trying to shut everything out; from my bedroom, to my bed, to my body, to my thoughts . . .

I failed.

. . . He totally deserves it . . . He doesn't deserve it . . . you're going about this all wrong, take the time to think about things first _before_ you start charging in there like a bull . . . he turned evil. When? When L challenged him on TV? When he decided to be the God of the New World? Or when he "killed" Naomi and Raye?_  
_

I laid flat on my back again and groaned.

"I need a drink."

I threw off my covers and swung my legs over the side of my bed. I stretched myself out a little, and rolled my head around, listening to the bones pop and crack somewhere in the back of my neck. I wore my hair down, and black pajamas, which were comprised of a pair of drawstring pants, and a button-up shirt. The edges were lined in red. Not particularly remarkable, but comfortable.

I walked down to the kitchen. I grabbed a can of Diet Dr. Pepper out of the fridge and then pulled a tall glass out of one of the cupboards and filled it with ice. For some reason, this stuff never tasted right to me without the ice. After pouring in my drink, I walked over to the pantry and instinctively reached for the container of Nutella that I had, but stopped myself short. My hand hovered over the canister for a few seconds while I thought to myself: "Wait a minute, doesn't this defeat my desire to get some decent rest tonight?" before I decided: . . . Screw it, I could drink a gallonful of delicious warm milk, and I still wouldn't go to sleep. Besides, if I really wanted to get some sleep tonight, I'd stop by the pharmacy and pick up some sleeping pills. See how long that works . . .

I shook my head and grabbed the Nutella. I also took out a loaf of bread, and then went over to pick up a plate and a knife.

I stalked over to the living room, belatedly remembering that if I wanted to watch TV, I'd have to zap my laptop over from my room. Unfortunately, the actual television that we had was forbidden to be used for anything that was other than beneficial for the investigation. It was tool, not a luxury. Whatever.

When I walked through the door, I noticed L sitting in one of the stuffed chairs. He had his laptop in front of him on the table, while next to him on a dessert cart was his usual fare. Tonight's special: strawberry tarts, black tea that had so much honey in it I could probably smell it from here if I tried hard enough; and chocolate brownies, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top and plenty of chocolate sauce. If I hadn't already been holding my fix in my hands right now, I'd be so jealous of him.

I stood in the entryway for several moments, contemplating turning around and going back up to my room. For once I didn't feel like forcing my company onto him tonight, and it wasn't like he'd invite me to sit down with him or anything, we weren't friends . . . at least, I didn't think we were. Were we friends? We had our moments, like that one time when we played chess together, and all our little talks that we had, not to mention all the times he would torture me, tease me and/or annoy the fuck out of me because it amused him for some reason. But honestly, I believed that the only reason that those events came about was because . . . he was used to me. I'm not sure about comfortable, as he has proved a few times in the past whenever I "Surprise!"-glomped him (I can still feel his foot in my gut . . . owwwww . . .) that that most likely is not the case, not to mention the occasional glares he would send me when I was being too rowdy on a particular day. Whatever was the case, he humored me. He put up with me. Did he consider me a friend? After all, he's never sought me out, he rarely began a conversation with me whenever I was in the room; and hell, he never invited me to go out with him somewhere, anywhere, whenever he decided to take a short break from work! Yes, it's true folks! L! TAKES! BREAKS! He's been to an amusement park, a museum, a recreational park, and a MOTHERFUCKING ROCK CONCERT! Occasionally, I'd ask to come along. Sometimes I'd get rejected, and I would tag along anyway! However, and now this should be expected from hanging out with an taciturn hermit, he never acted like he was enjoying himself. He didn't even act interested in whatever we were doing, he was just . . . there. Why did he go out at all if he wasn't going to enjoy himself?

I blinked once. A few times. Then I glared into empty space, resolving to sit down wherever I damn well pleased. If L didn't want me there, he could say so and I'd disappear for the night; and if he didn't really care either way, fine by me.

Feeling tense, I walked over to the couch and laid out my stuff on the table. Ignoring the genius shut-in next to me, I drew up my legs under me and sat on on the couch. I grabbed the Nutella and spread it onto a slice of bread. Then I ate, taking a couple gulps of Dr. Pepper in between bites.

I nearly flinched when I felt L's eyes on me, but was able to steel myself and hold it together. I determinedly kept my gaze away from L's profile, feeling kind of irritated. Not because I was mad at him, in particular, but because I had so many thoughts flying around my head. So many questions and theories that I couldn't answer or confirm. I shut my eyes for a minute, trying to focus on the taste of my snack food and soda pop, but of course that didn't work, so I tried remembering an old show I watched.

All right, once upon a time there were three witches. One had the power to stop time and blow shit up, another had the power to see into the future and float in mid-air and was a born empath, the last had the power of telekinesis. One day the future-seeing witch got captured by the forces of Evil, and so the other two went to rescue her. They succeeded, but the third sister ended up getting killed off-screen, and was replaced by a back-up sister that was set up by the forces of Good to keep the witches' powers intact. Unity was important. Family was important. Repetition was important. Live normal lives, get interrupted by the demon of the day, learn family/life values, and repeat: Live normal lives, get interrupted, learn values, repeat. Oh yeah, and the kid of one of the witches was supposed to be the messiah or something . . . you know what, this isn't fair, I've _met _these guys before, they're alright! But isn't that how things went? Yup. Come on, it wasn't _that_ bad . . .

Ugggh . . . I'm bored.

"Whatever it is you're worrying about must not be that important if you can get distracted so easily." L observed.

GAH!

I startled, and swung my head around to face L, who was looking at me with his familiar dead-pan expression and beautiful wide, black eyes.

I glared at him and snapped "Well, cut me a break here, L, this is the best I've had it all night!"

Do me a favor, and please, please, _please _don't ask me what I'm worrying about, I don't wanna talk about it yet!

God must have been watching me right about now and decided to do me a solid, because the next thing he said was "What is that?"

I looked at him, raising my eyebrow in a questioning look, and he gestured to the chocolate-hazelnut spread I had on my bread.

"Oh, Nutella." I said, relaxing a little bit. "I picked it up on my way out from America. It's a chocolate-hazelnut spread that's fucking _delicious_. Haven't had it in years!" I took a bite, finally enjoying the flavor.

"I swear, this stuff is like crack!" I grinned, and took another gulp of soda.

"I see . . ." L trailed off.

I glanced at him and noticed him staring at my second-favorite junk food, his eyes alternating between the slice I had in my hand, and the open container in front of me.

I perked up, and felt the corner of my mouth curling up into a smile as I asked "Want some?"

His gaze switched back to my face, and after a few moments, he answered ". . . Yes."

Happily, I scooped up some Nutella on my knife, and handed it to him. When he wouldn't take it, I paused, and looked down at my hand. I turned the knife around so now the blade faced me, and looked back up at him. He sat for a few moments, staring at my hand and then delicately grabbed the knife.

I watched as he brought the chocolate up to his mouth, studying his face for any kind of reaction as he ate the proffered confection. All I got was a blink, and him reaching over for the Nutella container. No sign of emotion whatsoever. Well, that was alright, I thought as I watched him pick up his spoon from where he left it, next to his plate of brownie and vanilla ice cream.

He likes it, so I guess that's all that really matters . . .

I frowned for a split second.

But one of these days, I'm gonna get this guy to smile. COME ON, L! Repressing all those emotions can't be healthy! Unless you're afflicted with some psychological disease that leaves you unable to feel, which, by the way, I doubt you are, but _if _you are, _please _enlighten me, so I won't feel like I'm wasting my time here!

I took a breath. Calm down, Sen, calm down this is not the time. He accepted something from you, and he's not treating it like poison! Be happy for that.

All right, all right, well . . . since he's willing to talk, then, what else could we do . . .

After a few minutes of drinking my Dr. Pepper and watching L snarfing down one of my favorite treats, I finally asked

"L, what do you think of the Devil?"

L glanced over at me, and after a couple more bites of Nutella, and swallowing, he answered "I think he is the representation of evil in the human heart."

"Well, yeah, that's the conventional thought." I responded, dragging my legs out from under me and over the side of the couch. I leaned back against the cushions and continued. "But have you ever thought seriously about what the Devil really is, what he really was, if he ever existed?"

"No."

I raised an eyebrow at him, but went on. "Occasionally, I wonder if the Devil's really as bad as everyone says he is. I wonder if he made himself to be some sort of martyr, made an example of himself, someone whom everyone would hate and learn to stay away from so they could stay on the right path. I hear the classic tale of Lucifer falling from grace, and I wonder, 'What if there was a misunderstanding?' Hell, I've _met_ Lucifer before, although I'm still not entirely sure if it really was Lucifer himself, or just _a _version of him; you know, just one part of the whole. And this guy . . . wow, this guy had an ego! I'd like to think it was worse than Kira's, seeming as how he couldn't bring himself to love us lesser, murderous beings. "Little, hairless apes" he called us, as if we were that insignificant. He didn't believe that we mortals were every bit as important as the angels, that we were worth more than he gave us credit. Ahh, but it's been awhile, I'm probably forgetting a few significant details . . ."

I scratched my head.

"Hell, in the Disney version of _Hercules_, Hades was depicted as the bad guy. Why? Probably 'cause he was the Ruler of the Underworld, and when you're the Ruler of the Underworld, then nine times out of ten, it's gonna mean you're evil."

"But you know what I really love?" I grinned mischievously at him. "That one Transformer's episode where it turns out that Earth was built upon Unicron, who, as I understand it, was the equivalent of the Devil. And if that's true, then that means we're all the Devil's Bastard Children." I threw my head back and laughed.

"Best! Twist! Ever!" I laughed some more before I finished "Just think what that could mean for all of us."

L didn't reply at first. He put down the near-empty container of Nutella next to his laptop and picked up his cup of tea. Once taking a long sip of it, he said "You act as if "Unicron" . . . is real."

"Well, I, kinda, no, well, I, uh, you see . . ." I tripped and fell face first down onto the proverbial concrete.

"You're intrigued of being the bastard offspring of the ultimate evil." L noted.

". . . Yeah." I answered. "'Cause, if you can be the spawn of _Sata__n_, and still turn out all right, then one can't say there's no hope for someone who's gone so far off the edge he can't even see it anymore."

"Kira." L spoke matter-of-factly.

A pause.

". . ."

". . . Yeah." I said, looking over at him. "At this point, it's probably a little late, if not hypocritical and/or incredibly naive of me to think so, but . . ."

I looked away from him for a few moments, then gritted my teeth and turned back. Gazing into his eyes, trying to find some relief in the black, blank wall he presented, I continued "I wonder if it's possible to get him to stop. Make him reconsider, talk him down . . ."

"How would you suggest to do that?" He asked.

"No idea, to be honest. At least, no ideas that I am completely sure are going to work. I can make a guess at how his brain works, what started him down this road . . . I can imagine talking with him, possibly identifying with him a little, but changing his _mind_ . . ." I looked away.

"Goes completely against all the propaganda you've given in the past against him. All the malicious feelings you exhibit towards him every time someone brings him up in a conversation." L interjected.

I flinched. This time I couldn't repress it.

"Why are you suddenly changing your mind?" L asked.

"I'm not changing my mind . . ." I had to bite my lip to keep myself from accidentally saying Light's name aloud. "Kira needs to be punished. He's gotta serve time, think about what he's done, though I'm not sure about the death penalty . . ."

"I'm just . . . taking some ideas into consideration. I . . . kinda know him. Not well, but . . . enough. These are just . . . thoughts." I turned towards him again.

Thoughts which have been driving me up the wall every night!

"I see." L took ahold of his spoon and dug into the ice-cream covered brownie next to him.

Even if the guy didn't talk much, even given the rarity of him ever opening up on any of his personal thoughts he may have had, which didn't involve any of the investigations he was in, I was grateful that he let me stay here and speak my mind. I was grateful that he listened. Even if it turned out he was only letting me talk so he could evaluate whether or not I was going to sabotage his battle with Kira later on, I was glad for him, having him here, with me.

Dammit, I cracked.

"You know what else I think about?" I queried, staring up at the ceiling.

No answer. A subtle _'clink' _of spoon against dish, but that was all.

"I think about . . . whether it was possible . . . that the reason Lucifer fell from grace . . . was because he wanted so see how low one could really go. I wonder if he wasn't . . . _fascinated _by the idea of Evil himself."

"Whether or not he was is neither here nor there." L spoke, "He is an idea. An example, as you've stated, a warning to keep people on the side of good. The real challenge, is figuring out what. Is. Good."

I glanced at him, for a split second wondering 'What, you don't believe I've met the Devil?' and, 'What do I talk to you for, again?' but I could understand his point; and he was right. I lay there on the couch for a few minutes, feeling relieved, somehow significantly more relaxed than I had been coming in through the door.

I leaned over and grabbed my soda back from where I'd set it down on the table. Glancing over at L's cart as I took a drink, a strange thought came to me: Honey, chocolate, strawberries, and vanilla are all aphrodisiacs, aren't they? If so, then . . .

_'This guy's gonna be as horny as hell tonight.' _I thought suddenly. I sat there for a few seconds, letting it sink in. Then I snorted, and clapped a hand over my mouth in an attempt to keep myself from laughing, but it was no use.

I noticed L staring at me for a couple seconds, looking like he was wondering just what the hell was I thinking about this time, before he appeared to shrug it off and scooped some more Nutella into his mouth, which only made me laugh harder.

_'Oh please . . . please stop!' _I thought, _'I-I won't be able to ta-ha-hake him seriousleee!'_

Black leather came to mind, and pretty soon I was in hysterics. Wow, this did turn out to be a pretty good night, after all! HAHAHAHA!

* * *

_"We live, we die . . . and the wheels on the bus go round and round"_

**_The Bucket List_**_; _Edward Cole

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Voodoo - Godsmack**

**Howling - Abingdon Boys School**

**Riddler - Nightwish**

**Skid Row - Little Shop of Horrors OST**

**Like Toy Soldiers - Eminem**


	21. Fallen

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic**.

* * *

_I see their pain . . . On some level, I even understand their pain . . . I just can't _feel_ their pain"_

Dexter Morgan (_Dexter_; Season 1 Episode 2: **Crocodile**)

* * *

_"Why do you trust me?"_

"I don't know_ . . . can't we just . . ."_

_"That's not rational!"_

_"Nothing's rational!"_

"Everything_ is rational!"_

_"I was raped. Explain how that makes sense to you."_

_". . . We are selfish, base animals crawling across the earth. But 'cause we got_ brains, _if__ we try real hard, we can occasionally aspire to something that is less than pure evil."_

Greg House and Eve (_House_; Season 3 episode 12: **One Day, One Room**)

* * *

_"You see the knowledge of death changes everything: If I were to tell you, the exact date and time of your own death . . . it would shatter your_ world _completely . . . I know . . ."_

_"Can you imagine what it feels like to have someone sit you down . . . and tell you that you're dying? The gravity of that . . . that the clock's ticking for you . . ."_

_"In a split second, you're almost cracked open. You look at things differently, you smell things differently . . . you savor everything, be it a glass of water or a walk in the park . . ."_

_"But most people have the luxury of not knowing when that clock's gonna go off . . . and the irony of it is, that keeps them from really living their life, it keeps them sleepwalking . . . it keeps them drinking that glass of water, but never really tasting it."_

_ "You can still fix this John . . ."_

_"Yeah, but can we fix_ you?"

John Kramer (Jigsaw) and Detective Eric Matthews (_**Saw II,** _**2005**)

* * *

**Vision 45: Misa**

_May 19, 2003_

It was night. Mr. and Mrs. Amane were in the kitchen, the husband sitting at the table and poring through files from work while the wife cooked dinner. Mr. Amane was American, blonde, with light brown eyes and pale white skin. He wore a white button-up shirt, beige pants, and white socks. Mrs. Amane was Japanese, and had short black hair that curled up at her ears, light blue eyes, and pale skin. She had on a light blue sweater, with a white shirt underneath, as well as a dark blue skirt. The missus was a bit on the slender size, while the husband had an average build. Mr. Amane worked out on a regular basis, but only for the sake of keeping in shape and staying healthy, at the insistence of his wife.

I stood outside their window, far enough away from the light and their line of sight so that I wouldn't be spotted. It had rained recently, and the clouds were slowly disappearing from the skies.

Suddenly, the sound of a door opening and slamming.

"Moooooom! Daaaaaad! Guess who's hoooome!" A feminine voice called out cheerfully. Misa Amane skipped through the door. Her hair was blonde, and drawn up into two buns on each side of her head. She had a couple of stray locks loose, which framed the sides of her face, and her bangs were worn down. Her eyes were a light brown, and had a little bit of eyeliner surrounding them, along with a touch of mascara. She wore a white dress shirt that had white flat buttons on the cuffs, and wore over it a red corset that an intricate design of swirling black lines on it and small black gauzy fringe. She wore a black skirt that from where I stood, looked like it had three layers. Best way I can describe it is: Longest strip of fabric goes first, then the shorter one, then the shortest one. Under the skirt she wore white pantyhose and a pair of black Mary Jane platform shoes. In her hand was a purse shaped like a bat.

"Misa! Darling!" Mr. Amane said, getting up from his seat, and laughing as the 18-year-old girl jumped into his arms for a hug.

"Hi Daddy! How are you?"

"Misa!" Mrs. Amane said sternly. "What are you doing? You know the rules: Shoes _Off_!"

Misa sighed. "Yes, Mooom." She groaned, and walked out of the kitchen to put away her shoes. The parents followed. "How is my baby girl?" Mrs. Amane asked, a smile in her voice. "Great, Mom! My apartment is _fantastic, _and my manager has managed to get _three _different companies interested in having me in their commercials and magazines!"

"Aren't you supposed to be at a shoot right now?" Mr. Amane asked.

"Oh, it got canceled! Apparently the photographer had a_ fit_ because he didn't get the cameras he wanted to use for the shoot. My manager tried to convince him to use the ones he already had, but he said "No!" and dumped his cup of coffee on her shirt! Then he stomped out of the studio, saying that we were all "ruining his _artistic vision_" She giggled.

"Is _that _right?" Mr. Amane said skeptically, raising an eyebrow and looking at his wife.

"But it's OK! Cuz now I get to hang out with you guys! Oh, it's been _forever _since the last time I was here!" Misa sighed, extending her arms out to the sides and spinning around in a circle as she came through the entrance to the kitchen.

"You were here last week." Mrs. Amane pointed out.

"And the week before that, and the Sunday before that . . ." Mr. Amane teased. "And then three days before that . . ."

Misa paused. She laid her hand over her mouth and peered guiltily over her shoulder before admitting "Weeelll yeah. But it's only because I miss you all so much!"

I _had_ to have been hearing things, because there was _no goddamn way _that somebody could be _this _nauseatingly happy _all _the time! She reminded me of a character in a video game I'd played once, though I kinda forgot what her name was. All I remember is a blonde cheerleader, a _fucking chainsaw_, and lollipops.

Mrs. Amane shook her head and hugged her daughter. "Oh, sweetie . . . it's only been a month since you moved out. You'll get used to living on your own, I promise!" She pulled away. "In the meantime, why don't we have dinner? I was just about to set the table."

"Yaaaay!" Misa shot her hands up in the air and kicked up her leg back.

I'd found out that Misa had been into the Gothic scene for quite awhile. It had started with a fascination with horror flicks, and then it got jump started after she watched a Gothic cult film. She'd experimented with several different styles and facets of the Gothic culture before she finally settled into Gothic Lolita. How she managed to get into this and _still _retained her bubbly personality is beyond me. I'd have better luck trying to wrap my brain around peppy cheerleaders, fucking _rainbows_, hearts, jock boyfriends, shopping, and all things girly, nice, and cute working harmoniously with fucking _zombies_, decapitated heads, shit blowing up, awesome gothic villains, insane siblings, and a perverted mentor. Something which I have never successfully done . . . Have I mentioned the fucking chainsaw?

_Lollipop! Lollipop!_

_Oh lolli, lolli, lolli_

_Lollipop, lollipop . . ._

_**NO!** _**NO! **No! We _are not playing that! _Unless you plan to put on Three 6 Mafia, TURN THAT SHIT OFF!

_. . ._

"All right everyone, it's time to say Grace." Mr. Amane said as they all sat down.

"Aw, do we have to do that Dad?" Misa complained, propping her elbow on the table and resting her cheek against her palm. "Can't we just say "Itadaki-masu" and get on with it?" She pouted.

"Misa, I thought we'd gone over this."

"Well, yeah, we did, but I just can't see the point! I mean, _God_ doesn't exist, so why should we say thanks to something who's not even around to listen to us?"

"I told you honey, God _does _exist. He exists for all of us. Even if you can't prove that, you can't prove it the other way, can you?"

"Weeeell . . ." Misa trailed off.

"Look, I know it's hard for you to understand, but . . . humor me a little. It won't hurt, will it?"

"Mmmm . . ." Misa frowned. ". . . Alright."

Then they all grasped each other's hands. Mr. Amane started off the prayer: "Our Father, who art in Heaven . . ."

Huh, that was new. I had never realized that Misa didn't believe in God before . . . also, I just noticed, Misa hasn't been referring to herself in Third-Person at all since I first saw her. I thought that was a tic of hers, calling herself "Misa-Misa" or just "Misa" in place of every "I" she would have to use in a sentence.

They finished dinner, then watched some TV together. It got late, and her parents offered Misa to stay the night, saying that one of them would drive her to work tomorrow morning, since she didn't have a car yet (she'd come here by taxi). She accepted. Before she went up to bed in the guest bedroom, which had been her old room, her parents pulled her aside.

"Misa . . ." Mrs. Amane started. "Your father and I just wanted to say . . . how proud we are of you."

"Not many girls have been able to accomplish what you have." Mr. Amane said, "You're a very lucky girl."

"So, before you become some famous idol or something . . ." Mrs. Amane began.

"Oh come on, Mom, I'm not gonna be _that _lucky!" Misa rolled her eyes, smiling.

"Yes you will," Mrs. Amane insisted. "You're talented, you're hard-working, and you've got _skill_ . . . which is why the both of us want you to remember a few important things."

Mrs. Amane brushed her fingers along Misa's face, and cupped her cheek in her hand. "Don't ever change. Please, please stay the same sweet girl you are now."

"Don't let the popularity get to your head," Mr. Amane put in, "You can get some pretty cool friends among us little people.

"And you know what, whenever you decide you want a boyfriend, _be smart about it_. There are a lot of guys who would like to use you because of your position. Try to find a nice guy, someone who's . . . smart and sweet."

"You're gonna have to check in with me first." Mr. Amane interrupted, irritation lacing his voice. His arms were crossed.

"That's right dear" Mrs. Amane said, glancing over her shoulder at her husband and smiling at him. "And be careful with how much money you spend, dear. The last thing we need is another family member going bankrupt! But don't be afraid to help out those in need as well."

"So . . you're saying to donate to charity?" Misa asked, tilting her head to the side and gazing at them quizzically.

"Donate to charity, lend a few bucks to a hobo . . . whatever suits your needs." Her mother smiled, and hugged her.

"I love you, honey."

"We love you, Misa." Mr. Amane came around and hugged his daughter from behind. It was a tender moment, one you could probably take a picture of and put into Hallmark cards. Misa closed her eyes and reveled in the warm moment, before they all broke apart and went off to bed.

.*.*.*.

_3:30 AM; May 20, 2003_

Misa jerked upright in bed. She could have sworn she heard a loud noise in the darkness. She listened intently, but could hear nothing else. Curious, she got out of bed and peeked through her door. Nothing. She walked down the hallway and turned the corner into her living room, where she saw a tall stranger in black wearing a ski mask over his face stuffing an old painting her parents had bought years ago into an old bag. The door was open, the handle had been broken off and lay on the floor abandoned.

She froze. Dear God, they were being robbed! What if he was armed ? ! Misa took a deep breath, trying to be as quiet as possible as she attempted to calm herself down.

Okay . . . okay . . . she had her cell phone. It was in her room in her purse. All she had to do was to quietly slip away before the robber noticed, call the police, and everything would be all right! Shaking, the young Lolita stepped backwards, quietly, cautiously, praying to God, if there really was one, that the man wouldn't see her.

At that moment, the robber looked up. Misa gasped. He dropped his bag and ran after her. She screamed, and ran to her room, but couldn't make it in time before he grabbed her, pinned her arms behind her back and covered her mouth.

"Shhh! Shut up, _shut up!_" The robber whispered angrily as she continued to scream into his hand. She squirmed in his embrace, tried to kick him, but failed. It was then that Mr. and Mrs. Amane ran into the room.

"Misa!" Mr. Amane yelled.

The robber looked up, and as Misa's father advanced toward them, with the intention of attacking the man who held his only daughter hostage, he pulled out his gun and aimed it at Misa's head. "Not . . . another . . . step!" He said lowly.

Mrs. Amane gasped, and held her hands over her mouth. Her eyes were wide, she wasn't sure what to do.

Mr. Amane stood still. After a few moments he said ". . . Put down the gun."

"I don't think so." The robber responded. He cocked the gun.

Misa was frozen stiff. Oh my God, he was going to kill her wasn't he? He was going to kill her! She didn't want him to kill her! Oh God, help! Daddy! She stared anxiously at her father, afraid to move or speak.

". . . Put down the gun." Mr. Amane said slowly "We'll do anything you ask, just put down the down."

Mrs. Amane shot a surprised look at her husband. She wasn't too keen on the idea of negotiating with someone who was threatening to kill their daughter, but she figured that her husband was working on an idea to disarm the robber and was trying to stall him for as long as possible.

The robber glared at them both warily. Mr. Amane held up his hands. Empty. No tricks. Mr. Amane took a few cautious steps towards the two but immediately stopped when the robber's finger twitched on the trigger. After that, the robber took several steps backwards, moving over to one corner of the living room, his eyes never leaving the Amanes for a second. He stopped at a door leading into a small closet, and quickly released Misa's arms from behind her back, while wrapping his other arm which held the gun in a chokehold around her neck. After that he opened the door, shoved the girl in, and closed it, then turning his gun on the man and woman in front of him.

"You get in." The man growled.

"NOW!" He yelled when the two didn't move. The both of them flinched, but complied, maintaining a safe distance from the thief until they came to the closet. Held at gunpoint, Mr. and Mrs. Amane were forced into the small space with their child. Once inside, the robber shut the door behind them and locked it.

Misa was shaking, her arms were wrapped around herself and she was trying not to cry.

They waited there in silence, listening as the robber rummaged through the rest of the living room, occasionally leaving and reentering the room as he took a bag of stuffed goods over to his car and came back with a new bag. Finally, he finished, and left to ransack a new room.

"We-We're gonna be okay, right Dad?" Misa asked, trembling as she looked up at her father. "He's not gonna come back . . . right?"

"No sweetie." Mr. Amane answered, caressing her face as he tried to comfort her. "But we can't stay here. Someone's gotta call the police."

"But the door's locked."

"I can pick it. Honey," he said, talking to his wife. "Scoot over a bit so I can grab that wire hanger?"

"Do you think it'll work?" She asked as Mr. Amane fiddled with the hanger.

"It should, hopefully." Mr. Amane murmured under his breath. "Otherwise, I may have to risk kicking down the door."

"Maybe we should stay here." Misa said in a small voice. "Wait until he leaves . . . I . . . I don't . . ."

"Misa, I'm not gonna let this man get away with this. He's broken into our home, stolen our valuables and belongings, and he's attempted to murder you and leave us for dead in a closet! If we wait, the police may not find him. We don't know who he is, what his name is, or where he came from. Heck, we don't even know what he looks like! And it's possible that the police may not be able to scan for fingerprints since he's been wearing gloves this whole time. We need to get a hold of them _now_, when he least expects it."

"But how are you gonna keep him here?" Misa asked.

"You let me worry about that sweetie." Mr. Amane responded, shoving the fixed wire hanger into the lock with a grunt. "Good! It fits! Now listen closely Misa" He looked at his daughter, "When I open this door, go straight to your room, grab your phone and call 110. Nara, I need you to cover me, alright?"

Nara Amane nodded. Carefully, as quietly as he could, Mr. Amane unlocked the door and opened it. He peered through the doorway, searching the room for the robber. He found him, bent over in front of the refrigerator in the kitchen. Knowing the coast was clear, he whispered urgently to his daughter "Go . . . _Go!"_

Misa nodded, sidled past her father and darted towards her room.

She found her bat purse on the floor next to her bed, got down on her knees, and opened it hurriedly. Hands shaking, she rummaged through its' contents.

Meanwhile, Mr. Amane crept over to the kitchen, motioning to his wife to cover the other entrance in the hallway leading to the front door. Looking through the entrance from the living room into the kitchen, Mr. Amane saw the thief's profile. His ski mask was rolled up so that he could see his mouth. The man was tossing a red apple up into the air and catching it in his left hand as he closed the refrigerator door and opened the freezer door. With his face concealed behind it, he couldn't see Mr. Amane coming after him until he closed it, turning his face towards the angry, middle-aged man in surprise as he was tackled to the ground.

The two men rolled around on the ground, wrestling each other, each trying to land a good punch, but failing. At one point, the robber managed to pin Mr. Amane on his back, and reached for the gun he had tucked into his belt. The minute he pulled it out, however, Mr. Amane broke free and struck him on the side of his face. This caused the robber to drop his gun, which spun away from them as it slid on the floor.

Quickly, Nara ran into the kitchen and picked up the gun. Holding the weapon in both hands, she tried to aim for the intruder, intending to disable him, but couldn't get a clear shot.

As this was happening, Misa was finishing up her call with the authorities.

"Yes! Yes! . . ." Misa said shakily. "My parents are in the kitchen right now, they're . . . I don't know what they're doing, just _please_ get someone over here quickly! He has a gun!"

On cue, the sound of a gunshot went off. Misa jumped, and looked fearfully over her shoulder.

"MOM! DAD!" She yelled. Turning to her phone, she finished "Please! Hurry!" before shutting it off and running out of the room.

Knives had been spilled onto the kitchen floor. The robber and Mr. Amane faced each other, having broken away from their fight after Nara had shot her husband by accident. Mr. Amane held his hand over his shoulder, attempting to stem the bleeding and quell the pain, prepared to fight again if he had to. The thief, meanwhile, held a long blade in his hand, which he had grabbed from the knife holder that he previously knocked over. He held it out in front of him, threatening to kill Mr. Amane if he came any closer.

Mr. Amane edged towards the side, moving out of the way so he could give his wife a good shot at the thief. Mrs. Amane let off two shots, which missed as he jumped away from the bullets and ran after Mr. Amane, who was able to catch the other man's wrist just in time before he stabbed him. The thief tried to punch him, but got his other hand trapped as well, so instead he swung his leg out in front of him, causing Mr. Amane to fall and land hard on his back.

Once more they fought, rolling around on the ground as each tried to get the best of the other. As they struggled, the robber managed to land a good hit on Mr. Amane as he tried to pin him down, stabbing him deeply in his right hip. Mr. Amane cried out in pain, and fell on the tiled floor, grabbing his side. Again, Nara shot, but the man managed to quickly roll away just in time.

He got up, and before Mrs. Amane could realize what was happening, he tackled her to the ground and knocked the gun out of her hand. He pinned her where she lay, trying to keep her still as he held up his knife. Valiantly, Nara fought back as hard as she could, beating against him and at one point managing to rip off his mask. It didn't do her much good. The thief's hand locked around the housewife's throat, holding tight as she stabbed the woman through the chest once, twice, then three times, and then slashed her throat.

By this time, Mr. Amane had tremulously managed to pick himself up, and was staring in shock at the body of his dead wife. The thief turned to look at him over his shoulder, and grabbed his gun from where it lay next to the woman he had just killed. He aimed it at the other man's heart and, looking him straight in the eyes, never blinking once, shot him dead.

Mr. Amane fell to the ground with a thud, and the robber lowered his gun, almost relaxing for a moment . . . right before he heard the sound of a stuttering gasp right in front of him. He looked up.

Misa stood in the doorway, her hand over her mouth, shaking, tears spilling out of her eyes.

Slowly, the robber stood up. Misa never moved. She stared at the man with wide eyes as he walked over to her. For awhile he didn't say anything . . . and then:

"You never saw me." He murmured.

The next thing Misa knew, she had a five to six-inch-long blade lodged in the middle of her chest. She stared at it for a few seconds, not comprehending. She felt . . . detached, almost as if she were in a dream. Then she turned her gaze upwards towards her killer, and fell.

.*.*.*.

It'd be another half hour before the police arrived. Marcus Amane was dead. Nara Amane was dead. However, by some strange miracle, Misa Amane had managed to survive! According to her doctors, her stab wound, while deep, had missed the vital organs in her system. They expected a full recovery in about two to three weeks, and with any luck, there wouldn't be any scars.

There wasn't. But you know, one doesn't normally watch their family get murdered in cold blood and come away with nothing.

For weeks Amane didn't say a word. She sat in her bad, gazing out into space. Her eyes were blank, empty. Psychologists were called in to help her, but they couldn't get a response from her. They may as well have been talking to a mindless doll.

The medics did all they could to help. They stuck tubes in her so that she could eat and drink. The nurses would put on the TV now and again to entertain her. They would also fluff her pillows, change her sheets, and gave her baths.

Tragic . . . simply . . . tragic.

Never moving, never speaking, eating . . . she _would _sleep, but even then, it was only for a few hours at a time, and those were few and far in between.

Her wound healed, and then Misa Amane was moved to the psychiatric ward, where she continued to lie in her bed everyday.

One day, there was a breakthrough. A nurse had turned on the TV. The news was on. Apparently some guy had been captured. He'd been arrested after he'd been found standing next to a dead businessman. The police suspected that he'd been trying to rob this man blind right before he'd been caught, however at the moment all they had was circumstantial evidence.

They showed the man's picture on screen. Misa looked at it. She could hear her heart pounding loudly inside her head. Seconds rolled by . . . minutes, an hour.

And then she screamed. She threw random objects around the room: Desk Lamps, books, chairs, pillows. She tried to break the television using one of the lamps she'd broken, swinging it hard against the screen again and again until it cracked, and it was forced out of her hand by a member of the staff. Two men held her arms, trying to force her into her bed as she kicked and screamed and struggled.

Her psychologist came in, and tried to calm her down. She wouldn't listen. She managed to wriggle her arm loose from one of the orderlies holding her down and tried to hit her doctor in the face.

"YOU MONSTER, YOU BASTARD, YOU TOOK EVERYTHING FROM ME!" She screamed as the orderlies subdued her again. "I HOPE YOU ROT IN HELL YOU MISERABLE EXCUSE FOR AN APE!"

The psychologist pulled a nurse over to him as Misa continued to fight against her captors, and ordered her to find some more orderlies who could hold Misa down while he got the tranquilizer to subdue her.

"LET ME GO, YOU ASSHOLES!" She continued to scream. She tried to bite one of the men, but the orderly managed to get out of the way just in time while the other forced her down into the bed. "I'M GOING TO KILL HIM! I'M GONNA KILL HIM! I WANT THIS MAN DEAD! LET ME OUT OF HERE, I WANT THIS MAN DEAD! _**DEAD!** _LET ME GOOOOO!"

After awhile she was subdued, and she slept. The next time she woke up, she had guards standing around her, prepared to hold her down again in case she had another episode.

It seemed that was all she needed in order to start talking. She told her psychologist everything. How her parents died, how she felt right now, and what her parent's murderer looked like. She would stay in the hospital for a few more weeks before she was released. She would go to court. The thief would somehow get released, and Misa would be forced to cut out her own path in life, trying to find a way to live with the fact that her would-be killer had been set free. She would be force to try to find a way back into the old normalcy she had, when everything was perfect and could only get better.

Did she succeed? She appeared to. And for some odd reason she had taken to referring to herself in third person, occasionally calling herself "Misa-Misa." She never had another episode, and her doctor had cleared her, saying that she was perfectly healthy. Scarred, hurt maybe, but healthy. Though sometimes I wonder . . .

.*.*.*.

I watched it all happen, and I didn't do a single, goddamned thing.

* * *

**Vision 46: Break**

Why did I watch? I'm not sure. Probably because nobody else did, but that doesn't make me a better person, does it? I could have saved them, but I didn't.

Every day, I would come back to whatever apartment or penthouse L, Watari and I were currently living in, feeling numb. I felt an odd sensation in my chest, like someone had reached in and was attempting to squeeze all the blood out of my heart, but . . . it didn't hurt. It just felt . . . stifling.

I note this event as most significant, because it was the longest amount of time I had spent without interacting with L or Watari in some way. L, especially. I'd say about six weeks passed with me walking around like a zombie, never looking at L, and avoiding Watari whenever I could. If Watari tried to talk to me, no doubt he'd try to find some way to make me feel better, but the thing was . . . I didn't _want _to feel better.

Even if it was the Amanes' time to die, I should have done something, spared Misa the pain and trauma from watching her family die. Even if it wasn't the first time I'd let someone die (and it probably wouldn't be the last), I wanted to hurt. I needed to. I should hurt! Because if I hurt, then that means that a part of me is still human right? If I hurt, then that makes it okay right? Right?

. . . No . . . no, that doesn't make it okay. You had your chance, and you let it slip away.

I didn't expect any sympathy. I'd told myself multiple times that I didn't want it.

After Misa's Great Tragedy had ended, I'd holed myself up in my room, curled up into a ball with my arms wrapped around my legs while I sat on my bed. I'm not sure how long I'd stayed in there. Long enough, I suppose, for L to come in and see why I'd disappeared. The minute he walked in, the flood gates opened.

"I-It's not the first time," I stuttered. "A man and his wife died . . . they died because I didn't save them, because I thought it was okay to let them die, because they were supposed to die."

I rested my head against my knees. I'm not sure if L came any closer to me than from where he stood at my door, but I kept talking, not exactly sure why, knowing that L could easily leave and I'd be talking to thin air. I hoped he wouldn't. I hoped he could find it in his heart to listen to me, to help me. I wanted his compassion, I wanted his presence, I wanted his silence . . . what the hell do I want?

"It's not okay . . . it's not okay . . ." I murmured, "Why is it okay ? ! Why is it okay for them to die like that ? ! Why now? Why not later, when she wasn't so god damned clingy ? !"

"They . . ." My voice shook, "They are just another man, and another woman. They died, and it's sad, but we need to move on . . . so why do I feel like shit ? !"

I gestured wildly with one hand as I continued in hysterics, "Why do I need to feel sorry for them? Why do I have to mourn them? Because no one aside from . . . aside from _her _did? And why in the God Damn Hell do they matter more than those guys BB killed? Why do I need to cry? Am I some kind of masochist?"

"Am I mourning them because of _you_?" I asked, referring to L. "'Cause this girl's gonna come back with a vengeance and you're sure as hell not gonna like her when she does, I . . . I . . ."

I paused, curling in on myself again as I pondered . . .

"I'm fucking useless." I murmured. "I . . . have got to be . . . the most fucking useless human being on the planet. All the power in the world, and I can't do diddly squat! Half the skills I have now I could have cheated by stealing them from some nameless man or woman. Hell, in the past, I actually _did _do that! Whenever I needed to know important information right away, I stole them off of someone else! How is that fair, compared to how _most _people acquire their information! Even the superpowered ones!"

"You wanna know why there are no stories written about people who can do just about fucking everything ? ! It's because it's impossible! There's no story there! If a person can do anything, then where's the challenge? The only thing left in the world for that person is to become freaking _God_, and be done with it! But once they do that, they're gone! They stop giving a flying crap, and eventually lose their identity! They're gone, they're fucking gone, _they don't exist_! And no one cares . . ."

I paused again, this time trying to catch my breath.

"I . . . I let people die. Sometimes . . . sometimes I-I _would _try to save them, and then . . . my powers would inexplicably disappear . . . I'd try to tell people, but no one would believe me. They called me a cold, heartless bastard and abandoned me . . . I've lost a few friends that way . . ."

I hugged myself, feeling a chill come over my body.

"I know you don't like me L." I said softly. "I know you don't trust me. Sometimes I wonder why I keep trying to make friends with you and . . . and you know, I can't help it! I'm fucking _alone_ here, L! Most of my friends keep dying on me, and I haven't seen my family in over a millennia! I . . . I can't stay by myself."

I started sobbing. "I need to be human . . . but I can't be human . . . I don't wanna be human . . . fucking alone . . . all my fault . . . heartless bastard, need to feel something, anything . . . why do I let this happen? Fucking masochist . . ."

"Do you know how it feels to have everything you love and cherish become completely torn away from you? Huh? Do you?" I muttered to myself, "Do you know what it's like to see their faces every night, to remember the last expression they had on their faces right before they died? Do you know what it's like . . . to catch the face of their killers . . . and drown in a hate so powerful you think you would die in minutes from the burn? No . . . no you don't . . . you don't . . ."

I cried. I cried long and hard. L didn't say a word, if he had decided to stick around. I cried until I couldn't humanly cry anymore. I sat there, heart aching, mind a befuddled mess, wondering where I should go from here. Should I continue? Business as usual? That was the most important thing, right?

I didn't have an answer. My mind was blank. Probably because I didn't want to think anymore. Now if I could only shut off my emotions . . . if I only wanted to.

I sat there in the quiet for an immeasurable amount of time. I was tired, and was considering falling asleep like that, curled up into a ball. I had the bed under me if I fell, and the floor was carpeted, pretty damn comfortable if I do say so myself. There was only one problem . . . something . . . I smacked it away . . . something, whatever it was . . . was poking me.

The foreign object poked at me again, and I slapped it away again. When the thing started prodding my head, I slapped it hard, turned to my offender and yelled "GOD DAMN IT, CUT IT OUT, WILL YOU ? !"

Only to come face-to-face with a large, rainbow swirl lollipop. I blinked in surprise. stared at it for a few seconds, then drew my gaze up to the person holding the candy.

L-kun?

What the hell?

He offered it to me again, his other hand stuffed into his pocket, his eyes deep, his face blank. No expression, no emotion . . . my L.

I looked questioningly down to the lollipop and then back up at him again. He didn't say anything. If I could make any guesses, I could either take this thing, or I would leave it, and he would walk away with a new treat.

I looked back at the sweet, feeling uncertain, but grabbed it anyway, figuring it couldn't hurt. I pulled off the wrapping and started licking, watching L out of the corner of my eye as he pulled out another lollipop from his back pocket and hopped up onto the bed next to me in his usual crouch. I smiled a little as the detective began consuming the candy with ardour, feeling a little of the weight I'd had on me for the past few weeks ease a little.

We ate the lollipops in silence, finding a sort of comfort and companionship in the event. L still didn't say anything. He didn't offer me advice, or try to convince me of anything. He was just there, and oddly . . . I was okay with that. Even if he never turned out to be the friend I wanted him to be, or expected him to be, he was still here and, I was happy with that. As useless as I may be, that didn't mean that I could just drop what I was doing, that didn't mean that I had to stop trying, even if the Fates themselves decided to intervene, even if I wasn't totally capable for the job, because . . . because he was important. He was special. That was enough.

* * *

_"It's been five months since my family was killed. I don't see ONE man in jail."_

_"Obviously you're upset . . ."_

_"Upset? Is that the word? . . . I used to get upset, when I got a flat tire. I used to get upset when a plane was delayed . . . I used to get "upset" when the Yankees won the series. So if that's what upset means, then how do I feel now? If you know the word, tell me, because . . . I don't."_

Frank Castle and Police Chief Morris _(**The Punisher,**_** 2004**)

* * *

**A/N - Okay, I'm not sure if any of you can tell, but I basically pulled the robbery out of my ass, and would appreciate any help you guys can offer. Meant to post this yesterday (on L's birthday) but I didn't have time to finish it, so I suppose el Dia de los Muertos will have to do!**

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Misa - Death Note Original Soundtrack**

**Dark Light - H. I. M.**

**Precious - Depeche Mode**

**Kyrie II - DN OST**

**This is Halloween - Marilyn Manson**

**Halloween - A. F. I.**


	22. Psychoanalogy

**Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, if I did, L wouldn't have died. I also do not own any tv shows, video games, books, or movies to which I will most likely make a reference to in this fic.**

* * *

**Vision 47: Tennis**

Last night I had one of my better dreams. My boyfriend and I were walking together in a field. It was nighttime, we were alone. I admired the way the moonlight shone on the grass, the leaves on the trees and the various shrubbery around us. I'd convinced him that we would only be out for a little while, and his older brother wouldn't miss us.

I wanted to look at the stars with him. He already knew a bunch of the constellations that we saw. I showed him some new ones. The way I saw it, the right grouping of stars could look like anything. In fact that was my initial problem with stargazing way back when I was normal and boring as fuck, which I explained to him at length as I pointed at different groups of stars. It wasn't that I didn't like stargazing, they're pretty, and it's nice to lay on your back and imagine what else is out there. For the most part however, all that I could see was a bunch of shiny dots, with maybe one or two exceptions that flashed in different colors. I couldn't put much interest by them because it never seemed to matter. It wasn't important, so I couldn't bring myself to care. It wouldn't be until much later, when an old geezer of a wizard sat me down and forced me to give the heavens some closer inspection, that I finally discovered what the big deal was. This would later turn into a vested interest in space, aliens, and parallel dimensions (and when I say that, I mean like alternate realities, like what would happen if Neo took the blue pill), which lead me to join Starfleet. One of my favorite things about stargazing was finding a constellation that shouldn't be there. An arrangement of stars that I recognized from a different universe. It made me feel warm, comforted. Like I'd caught a glimpse of an old friend.

Speaking of "friend". . . I glanced out of the corner of my eye to look at my boyfriend's face. His profile and shining eyes. For some reason, I had this weird fixation with eyes. A few people knew how to pin me with a stare, several more had me falling into them even as I tried to discover their secrets, and SOME people played me like a damned snake charmer; they could make ANY kind of request, and I would comply. You could imagine all the trouble _that _particular weakness got me into.

And unfortunately for me, my boyfriend had the latter. I loved and hated him for it. Mostly I loved him. I could never stay angry at him for long, even when he hurt me.

. . . It's a good thing I'm a masochist.

After a few moments, he turned his face towards me and smiled. I returned it, revelling in this period of warmth, happiness, and peace that we managed to steal for ourselves, however brief it would be. I relived old memories we'd shared as I stood with him. The good and the bad.

He took my hand, and rubbed his thumb tenderly against my skin. I looked down at our clasped hands, feeling a rush of giddiness wash over me. I tried to stamp it out as much as I could, the whole scenario was becoming a bit too cheesy for my taste. I allowed myself a small smile though, and gripped his hand tight.

When I looked back up, everything had turned red. He had a panicked expression on his face, and suddenly the both of us were on a cliff. He was hanging on to me for dear life while I tried to pull him up. His lips moved, but I couldn't hear what he was saying over the loud roaring in my ears. I could feel the harsh wind buffeting against my body as I struggled to hold him up. His grip slipped several times on me, and each time I tried to tighten my grasp on him . . . until finally he fell. His mouth was open in a last cry for help, which I couldn't give, because someone had torn the wings from my back. I couldn't fly.

A piercing scream rose over the cacophony of noise stuffing my ears. I didn't realize it'd come from me until I'd felt the rawness in my throat. The last thing I saw before I woke up were a pair of blood-red eyes.

.*.*.*.

My eyes snapped open. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I stared up at the ceiling, my face only exhibiting mild surprise. After a few minutes, my pulse slowed. I stared at the ceiling for a bit longer before I dragged myself out of bed. I took a shower, pulled on some clothes, and headed out the door to meet L before he left for the university.

.*.*.*.

I sat in on the To-Oh Entrance Ceremony. I'm pretty sure it was meant to be uplifting for all the future students of To-Oh University, but all I heard was a load of boring, meaningless noise. I wouldn't have been there in the first place if it hadn't been for two things: Providing L some moral support on his first day outside in six months, and the opportunity to fuck with Light some more. Plus, I can't honestly say that the ceremony was without its' highlights. Witnessing the moment L unintentionally started his own fan club was pretty funny, and I could barely stop myself from chuckling under my breath during L's speech. He sounded so bored, I could practically hear him going into autopilot as he recited the words. His voice was a just barely intelligible murmur, a low drone that, if he'd chosen to read any faster, would have expressed the fairly human notion of "Alright, can we get this over with please? I have some cake to attend to." At least that's what I would like to think, and well, that's L for you. And I have to admit, it was fucking hilarious to see Light nearly pee himself when L told him his identity. And it was just _priceless_ to see the man squirm in frustration. Too bad I wouldn't be there to watch him scream. I guess it's okay though, I still have the footage, so I don't really need to be.

I guess I'll settle for the stunned look on Light's face when he saw me in the limosine right before we left. I remember the subtle way his facial muscles froze in place as fear settled over him. I think he thought I told L who he really was. Or that he was going to hell; or both. Not wanting to grant him any favors (at least 'til I was sure he wouldn't make me regret it later), I smiled cheekily at him. Yeah, Yagami. You're screwed.

No regrets . . . not totally, at least from my end.

The best part though, was the moment L got into the limosine and we drove away. Right on cue, MC Hammer's Can't Touch This started playing on my I-pod. I _died_! Talk about epic timing! Hahahaha! I ended up laughing so hard, L forced Watari to pull over and kicked me out of the car onto some nameless corner of the city. After that he told me that he would either come back for me later, or I could get myself home when I'd calmed down. Needless to say I was there all night!

.*.*.*.

A few days later, it was Wednesday. I was walking around campus, singing under my breath while I tried to find the tennis court. Shouldn't be too hard to find . . . hopefully. Okay, here's a science building, I see a cafeteria . . . more buildings . . . maybe it would help if I paid more attention, I know I've seen that particular arrangement of bricks before! I feel like such a dumbass . . . you'd think I'd have learned by now.

_"There'll be times  
When my crimes  
Will seem almost unforgivable  
I give in to sin  
Because you have to make this life livable"_

Dispirited, I frowned. I wondered if Light had painted himself as a God because he couldn't face the fact that he had done something wrong. Lord knows I've done worse because of that same reason . . . although . . . did he think he did wrong back then? Or was he just shocked because he witnessed something that he couldn't comprehend, something supernatural? Even if he was, you'd think he'd be more pleased at first because of the lives he'd saved using that power. Instead, he loses his appetite, develops a minor case of insomnia and hides under his covers at night.

_"But when you think I've had enough  
From your sea of love  
I'll take more than another riverful  
And I'll make it all worthwhile  
I'll make your heart smile"_

He'd mentioned to Ryuk that he expected his soul to be stolen from him when the owner of the notebook came round searching for it. Or something else equally terrible. And at first glance, you'd think he'd have gotten off scot-free . . . until the end of the series, when it's revealed that there is no afterlife for this universe. I don't buy it, personally. I mean, come on, you live in a world where shinigami exist, and who will now and again mess with people's lives for their own sick amusement. Add a magic notebook, and a world not accessible from the human plane that is nothing but a desert wasteland and is always rotting, and you have to doubt that the whole thing was created from scientific evolution. But hell, who knows? Maybe this world has a God, and that God decided that the good/bad/so-so people who live in it shouldn't have an afterlife to go to, just cause. Maybe this God created human souls with an expiration date, which is why there is no afterlife for them, which would be kind of strange, since most of the souls I know are immortal . . .

I slowed my pace to a halt, feeling a cold chill of dread run through my body.

. . . No . . . No, it can't be . . . The only reason Ryuk thinks there is no afterlife is because the Shinigami world is all he's ever known. And shinigami are essentially immortal as long as they keep taking other people's lives . . . and no one knows what happens to them if and when they turn to dust . . . You-You can't make a mortal soul, can you?

I shook my head, and blindly took off ahead at a brisk pace, stopping only once to stumble onto a lamp post and wack my forehead firmly on the pole, before walking away irritably rubbing my throbbing forehead.

_"Strange love_  
_Strange highs and strange lows_  
_Strange love_  
_That's how my love goes_  
_Strange love_  
_Will you give it to me_  
_Will you take the pain_  
_I will give to you_  
_Again and again_  
_And will you return it . . .?"_

So . . . Knowing that there would be nothing for him after he died . . . knowing that at some point he would lose what little good he found in this world, knowing now that at some point he would cease to exist . . . what would that do to Light? . . . He wasn't religious, was he? Was he an athiest before? Athiests are usually okay with the idea of no afterlife right? Since no one can prove it, it's something for them to get used to as a state of fact, right? How would this affect what he did from that point onwards? Can't be a means of retaliation, none of those bastards actually _did _anything to him . . . he said he was doing this for the good of the world, but I find that a little hard to believe.

_"There'll be days_  
_ When I stray_  
_ I may appear to be_  
_ Constantly out of reach_  
_ I give in to sin_  
_ Because I like to practice what I preach"_

Then again, maybe I'm not giving Light enough credit. Excuse me, Glinda, which way to Hell? But he said he was going to be the _God _of the new world. How can you have the people's interests totally at heart if your main intent is to rule over them all like a glorified dictator? Well . . . God is also the Creator . . . so, maybe Light just meant what he said . . . that he would create a new world of love and peace. This would be his project, this would be his mark on the world . . . I guess I could understand that. Recognition. He was an ambitious person, and he wanted to do something great that, when finished, would leave him satisfied for all eternity with no regrets. There was always that lingering doubt, though . . . especially with the way things turned out . . . or will turn out. Never mind, trying to escape the electric chair, couldn't Light have found some other way to get the FBI off his back? He's smart enough for that, isn't he? I mean for crying out loud! He's gone up against . . . he _is_ going up against L! That has to mean something! But the best he could think of was killing them? There have to be better ways of making yourself disappear!

_"I'm not trying to say_  
_I'll have it all my way_  
_I'm always willing to learn_  
_When you've got something to teach_  
_And I'll make it all worthwhile_  
_I'll make your heart smile"_

Drifting back to reality for a few seconds, I noticed a track field way off to my left. Oh good, I'm close! I turned my feet towards the track and headed that way, eventually finding a small soccer field and, further off in the distance, the tennis court. Unfortunately, my joy was short-lived. As I moved closer, I noticed a sizable crowd of people already thronged around the chain-link fence that encircled the court. In the middle of the group, two figures whom I immediately recognized as Light and L moved quickly back and forth on either side of a tennis net as they fought to parry the other's advances. I frowned.

_'Alright, who started the party without me ? !'_ I thought petulantly._ 'Uggh!'_

I rolled my eyes, and then started towards the mass, elbowing my way past disgruntled young adults until I made it to the front and found a comfortable spot next to the entrance of the court. I leaned against the fence, crossing my arms in front of my chest and hoping that I didn't miss anything too important. Behind me I heard L's new fangirl fawn over him, which cracked a smile back onto my face and uplifted my mood a little.

I watched Light's and L's movements carefully, trying to anticipate each person's next course of action. I wasn't too familiar with the game, outside of the tennis ball can only hit the ground once, if ever, and neither player is allowed to miss or their opponent gets a point. So, all I could do was to try to watch for Light whenever he was trying to fake L out and then move L into the right direction. Not so much mind control, as gentle prodding, you know, just "words of advice" . . . very strongly intoned "words of advice", but nonetheless nothing more than a suggestion, which L thankfully followed. A couple of times I made a mistake, which L would immediately attempt to fix, and most of the time, he would succeed in saving himself.

I think L knew what I was doing. He glanced at me once during the course of the game, making me flinch and lose my concentration for a second, although whether it was because of fear or guilt I'm not entirely sure. But then again, I might be wrong . . . he's only human, and despite being a smart ass, he doesn't know _everything_ . . . no matter how many holes he plans to bore into my head with those insane eyes of his to persuade me otherwise. Plus he's been pretty damned well and determined to convince himself that my powers aren't real, and I'm just a really, really, eccentric specialist, and to otherwise not to give me any sort of acknowledgement whatsoever, which, honestly, has been getting on my nerves lately.

It came down to a tie game. I knew Light would attempt a power strike as his last move, so the important thing now would be to try to find some way to catch him off guard. He'd be pretty riled up at this point, so I made sure to watch his face. A few minutes later, a fierce glint sparked in his eyes, and instantly I reacted. At the same time when Light pulled back for his final swing I forced L into the position where I knew the ball would land. Light struck the ball with an almost savage strength, and I matched him point for point. L swung back his racket so fast you could barely see it, and by the time you did, the ball was already soaring back over the net, just missing Light's face by a few centimeters before it struck against the chain link fence with a harsh resounding note.

Light stood stock still, breathing heavily, holding on to his tennis racket in a considerably slackened grip as he tried to process what had just happened. Then the umpire called it:

"Game and set! Won by Ryuuga Hideki!"

I smiled, listening to the crowd clap and cheer in amazement. L would probably have considered this cheating . . . actually, I think anyone would. But the game itself didn't really matter. I know that L hates losing, and that Light hates losing. However, there's a subtle difference. L didn't really care whether or not he won the game. What he really wanted to do was to push Light into a position where he showed his true personality traits, one of which he just showed today: His pride. Light is never one to shy away from a challenge and in the first place never gives anything that he puts his mind into anything less than every bit of what he has. He knows his own strengths and knows how to use them effectively . . . What I'm trying to say that is that Light is still threatened by L, despite all the bravado he displayed in the previous night, despite his assumed confidence that he was going to win. He was ashamed of this fear and wanted to show L that no matter what he did, he could take it and then throw it right back in his face right before he destroyed him. And despite what some people may think, the match itself wasn't prophetic either. It was L's attack on Light's psyche, and he won . . . and thanks to me, he won by a landslide.

I looked back at L, receiving a dark glance (which, oddly enough, was not what you would think it'd be) from him as he caught his breath, inhaling and exhaling slowly at a controlled rate. He wasn't sweating as hard as Light either, which was interesting to see, and supported my mock theory of L being a ghost in a makeshift body.

He turned his gaze back to Light. "Good match, Yagami."

Coming back to himself, Light rubbed the back of his head bashfully and said jovially "Yeah, you too." The two of them walked towards the net and shook hands. "I haven't played that hard in a long time."

"Since you beat me and all, how about I treat you to a drink?" He continued, "I'm feeling kind of thirsty, plus there's something I wanted to ask you about."

"You humored me with a tennis match, the least I can do is to answer some of your questions." L responded amiably, as he walked around the net. "But before this conversation goes any further, there is something I must tell you . . ."

"What is it?" Light asked, turning to go and pack up his gear.

"I suspect that you, Light Yagami, are in fact Kira. Now, if you still wanna ask me something, please go ahead." He murmured. Subtle.

Light paused for second as the words registered in his brain. A cold look stole over his face for a split second as he glanced behind him, being careful to make sure that L couldn't see his expression. He turned towards L, staring at him for a few moments in surprise before he finally laughed. "You think _I'm _Kira?" He asked incredulously.

"Well, when I say I suspect you, it's only a 1% possibility." L answered, blase, "That aside, I don't mind telling you that once I'm sure that you _aren't_ Kira and I can verify that your deductive skills are as strong as I think they are . . . I'd like nothing more than to have you work with me in this investigation."

Light frowned, and then turned away again to put away his racket.

_'1%, huh? . . . That's nothing to him.' _Unless he was lying. _'But because of that 1%, my freedom is taken away from me. As long as he suspects me even in the slightest, he has the grounds to prevent me from meeting anyone on the Task Force . . . Nice move . . . You got me.'_

"There are too many people here." L spoke, looking around at the crowd. "Let's talk somewhere else."

"Yeah," Light agreed, "I didn't think that a simple game of tennis would attract so many people."

Well, that's probably because whenever the two of you are within proximity of each other, the level of epicness of any given situation gets turned up to 11.

"Would it be inconvenient if I brought a friend?" L asked.

Wow, the first and only time L has ever referred to me as a friend and it's when he's lying his ass off to _this_ hat. I am so touched.

"What? Oh, well, actually, no, I guess" Light responded, sounding a little thrown. "Is he a member of the Task Force?"

"She is." L answered. "In fact . . . this is her. I believe the two of you have met before." They stopped right in front of me. Light turned his face towards me and blinked in surprise.

I smiled and gave a small wave. "Heeeey, buddy!" I said archly.

"Sen ? !" Light exclaimed in shock, "But . . . wait, how . . . ?"

"All will be explained in due time," I stopped him as I raised my hand up and turned my palm towards him, before moving it along to my side in an arc. "But before now, let's get the hell outta here before the piranhas catch my scent." I smiled as I jabbed my thumb at the crowd.

Light looked over at L questioningly in an attempt to goad any sort of explanation from him. No such luck.

"Okay, let's go." L droned.

.*.*.*.

That night I would dream about blood. It was on my hands, my clothes. My hands were shaking. I heard someone screaming hysterically. Hot tears slid down my face as I grabbed the crumpled body in front of me and clutched him close to my chest. I screamed his name. Then his body was slumped on the ground again. I was on my knees, staring at my shaking hands. My mouth hung open slightly, as I tried to choke out words that wouldn't come out. Suddenly, my hands stilled. I felt myself shutting down. I became an observer. Silent, unfeeling, cold. I looked at down at the blood stained cadaver in front of me, barely registering the tears sliding down my face. His face hadn't even had the time to express shock before I'd killed him. The screaming hadn't stopped. Now it was angry, accusing (rightfully, mind you), promising to make my life a living hell the first chance she got. Instead of responding, I ignored her, and picked myself off the floor, and walked away without a single look back. Because I didn't care . . . I couldn't care . . . I didn't feel . . . anything . . .

* * *

**Sen's Playlist:**

**Strange Love - Depeche Mode**

**Kryie - Death Note Soundtrack**

**I Can't Kill - Dexter Soundtrack**

**Himitsu (Secret) - Death Note Soundtrack**

**Saiku - Death Note Soundtrack**

**The X-Files Theme - Mark Snow**


End file.
